​A few months ago, I stumbled across a tandem of interesting articles in the Frederick News-Post from the fall of 1938 while researching another Story in Stone. These finds featured a most unlikely topic for our “Clustered Spires” home—alligators. Within the clippings retrieved from the paper, I saw that Mount Olivet is the eternal resting place to four leading players in what can be deemed a gold ole-fashioned, reptilian drama.

I will tell you about the gator, later. But before I do, I’d like to introduce a few former Fredericktonians to you. I will start with a gentleman, who at the time in question, was working as a fireman and cook at the county jail that once was located in the 400 block of West South Street. This is now the Frederick Rescue Mission. His name was Harold W. “Peck” Roelke, and he lived basically across the street from the old jail and just a few house to the east with his wife, Arittinia Virginia (Burck) Roelke.  He was born in Frederick in 1901, the son of Richard and Clara (Brust) Roelke and died in 1956. "Peck" Roelke was a veteran of World War I, and recently received a wreath through the Wreaths Across America program. He is buried in Mount Olivet's Area CC/Lot 99A. You can read more about his life in the obituary below.

​Another player in this tale of yore was Harry Lucien Ebert. Mr. Ebert lived from 1881-1946, and his name may be recalled in relation to the fine dairy and ice cream establishment he was responsible for creating.  He and his wife were laid to rest in Area T/Lot 11, not far from the grave of legendary patriot and Maryland’s first governor, Thomas Johnson, Jr. As a matter of fact, Harry Ebert’s dairy operation was constructed on land that was once part of Johnson’s vast plantation on the north side of the city. The Ebert Dairy and Ice Cream Parlor is long gone as a business, but the structure still stands at 1781 North Market Street, cata-corner from Gov. Thomas Johnson Middle School. Many may recall its use as Letterio’s Italian Restaurant for many years. Since 2011, it’s served as the home of both the Flying Barrel and Monocacy Brewing Company.

​As for Harry L. Ebert, he resided at 410 South College Parkway in Frederick. In the 1940 US Census, he is living  with his wife Mary, brother John, and sister-in-law Mable Dertzbaugh.

Since Mr. Ebert’s business plays a role in our story, I want to share a bit more on its history. I’ve been aware of it for quite some time, and have two postcards in my personal collection that illustrate it wonderfully. He started with grocery and confectionary, which became an ice cream parlor. This was located downtown on the corner of Fifth and Market, and later moved to the outskirts along the main road north before there was a US15. In her May 6th, 2018 edition of Preservation Matters for the Frederick News-Post, Christina Martinkosky wrote about the building that many longtime residents knew as the old Ebert’s Dairy Building.
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“Before the 20th century, farmers consumed much of the milk they produced, with only a portion sold to the nearby community. Ice cream was an inaccessible treat for most people until the mid-19th century, when Nancy Johnson invented the first hand-cranked freezer. By the turn of the 20th century, a new industry emerged, when ice cream production started to shift from the home to local businesses. But distribution was limited, given that the product had to stay frozen throughout its distribution cycle or risk destabilization.
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The creation of localized milk and ice cream markets in the first quarter of the 20th century coincides with Harry Ebert’s entrance into the industry in 1915. At that time, he was already running a profitable grocery and soda fountain. The new enterprise was branded Peerless Ice Cream and operated out of a 900-square-foot space on the second floor of 505 N. Market St. The business had one employee with an annual payroll of $750. Within the first year, 500 gallons of product were made. Within four years, Harry Ebert was distributing ice cream to some of the largest vendors in Frederick.

​The company employed 45 people to run the plant, which was in operation day and night. When running at full capacity, the manufactory had the ability to produce up to 400 gallons of ice cream per hour. Much of the product was then transported by 10 large refrigerator trucks that delivered within a radius of nearly 60 miles, extending into Virginia, Baltimore and Washington, D.C.

The manufactory and dairy bar was an impressive reflection of how significantly the ice cream business had changed since Harry Ebert began his production 15 years earlier. Technological advances and the rise of the automobile changed the way Americans got their ice cream, by taking them out of the ice cream parlors downtown and into roadside eateries on major thoroughfares."

The hero of this week's story was William E. Baer, a resident in the late 1930s of East Sixth Street, 102 to be exact. Mr. Baer is buried in Mount Olivet’s Area SS/Lot 37B. Born in 1920, he was only 18 when the event happened that would put his name in the papers for all the right reasons. In the 1940 census, he is living with his parents (Richard and Josephine Baer) and five siblings. He would pass in 2004 at the age of 84. Mr. Baer's death date of June 13 (2004) resonates with me as he died the day before my father and hero, and both from complications associated with cancer.

Now having made proper introductions, I must confess that the true star of the show, once known around town as "Alley," is not buried here in Mount Olivet, but I'm sure you have a good idea for a reason why. I'm not quite sure where he wound up in the end, but I do know that he had quite the adventure in the late summer and fall of 1938.

So it appears the newspaper had some fun with the daring escape. Alley was a well-known attraction at the ice cream parlor, not something usually seen in such a place. I have read that small alligators were popular as pets during the time. It was the Great Depression, folks needed an escape. How many Fredericktonians had the opportunity to travel south and see a gator with their own eyes? 

​I found that alligators were living at the White House during the Depression, during Herbert Hoover’s presidency in the early 1930s. Hoover’s younger son, Allan, had two pet alligators that frequented the White House grounds, all the while, amazing and likely terrifying guests. The gators were said to have kept Hoover’s own German shepherd, named King Tut, on edge — not to mention the president’s Secret Service agents!

In researching, I'm thinking that our scaly friend received his name because it was an easy play on alligator. However, I also saw that one of the leading newspaper comic strips was that of Alley Oop, a loveable caveman , created by cartoon artist V. T. Hamlin. The following comic appeared about the time of Mr. Ebert's introduction of the Florida native to Frederick.

One month later in September (1938), an amazing find by the fore-mentioned "Peck" Roelke drew renewed interest and excitement in the case of the missing reptile.

Mr. Ebert may have been happy for his fellow pet-owner Mr. Haines, but the search continued for Alley. As time passed and the seasons changed giving way to colder temperatures, it is likely Mr. Ebert's hopes were waning. Ebert Ice Cream Parlor was booming with the holidays, as was the Plant with its annual Christmas flavors and special "block" (of ice cream) sales. Two days after the day celebrating Jesus' birth, Mr. Ebert received a much unexpected present thanks to the acumen of William E. Baer.

A happy ending as Alley was rescued and permitted to "thaw out" at an ice cream plant, which seems like a "just dessert" for the former escapee. As stated earlier, all these players, save the gator, are buried here at Mount Olivet. Some years back, I wrote a story about an alligator hunt thirty years previous. It involved another pet gone rogue in Frederick City's Courthouse Square neighborhood. 

The two-foot alligator of young Gordon Gaver escaped its domicile at the Urner household, eventually managing to gain entrance to a nearby property on W. Church Street—about fifty yards to the southwest, the home of Mrs. Henrietta Maulsby. A domestic servant got the surprise of a lifetime, finding the gator resting in a coal bin within Mrs. Maulsby’s basement. A police officer was summoned and aided by a young neighbor. The twosome successfully apprehended the sharp-toothed reptile after a three-hour standoff in which the said fugitive hid underneath a wood pile.

Unfortunately, the alligator fell prey to vigilante justice as he was clubbed to death. Fifteen year old Gordon learned a tough lesson that night. However, Gordon Gaver (1904-1964) would make a career out of owing and displaying exotic pets as he later opened the Jungleland Serpentarium along US 15 below Thurmont. This would eventually become the Catoctin Mountain Zoo and Wildlife Preserve. Mr. Gaver is buried in Mount Olivet's Area Q/Lot 83.

I wanted to wrap up the story with checking on any alligator-inspired gravestones. Although we can't claim any here in Mount Olivet, I did find a unique one in Jacksonville, Florida. It belonged to Joseph "Alligator Joe" Campbell (1872-1926), the originator of alligator farming in America and the owner of the former Florida Alligator Farm in Jacksonville. His unique grave marker can be found in Evergreen Cemetery in Jacksonville.

A 2006 River City, FL News article provides the following information about "Alligator Joe:"
 
"Joe's real name was Hubert and he was born in India in 1872, his father a decorated English officer. His passion was alligators and after his Wild West days and a stint of ostrich riding and training, he chose to live in Jacksonville, where, for all his showmanship, he was a well-respected naturalist.
 
Due to the drainage of the Everglades and other state development, 2.5 million alligators were reportedly killed in the 1880s. Commercial hunters and gun-happy tourists helped decrease the population. There seemed to be no better fun than killing gators while cruising on a steamboat.
 
Although Campbell also hunted alligators, because he feared their extinction he merged with Jacksonville's ostrich farm, the best in the country. By adding his gator collection to the lanky menagerie, he could study and breed both species.

​In later years, Campbell wrote a pamphlet about alligators, which included explanations of his life and work. His early gator farming was in Palm Beach, Arkansas and California. By the time he developed his Jacksonville enterprise, hoping to discourage their cannibalistic tendencies, he separated his alligators by size into pens of 200 head, numbering in the thousands. Alligator Joe died in 1926 at the age 53. His life story is certainly captured in stone.

​It’s hard to believe a man of such humble beginnings would be laid to rest and memorialized under one of the finest monuments in Mount Olivet Cemetery. He began his career as a rail hand for the Baltimore & Ohio Railroad, working in Martinsburg, Virginia in the late 1850s (It wouldn’t become West Virginia until 1863). A decade later, he was one of Frederick’s most savvy businessmen and “hospitable” hosts.

His name was Frank B. Carlin, and although his name isn’t remembered by many in the annals of town, the hotel businesses he helped grow are often referenced in context to Frederick of the late 19th century. These were exemplary of Frederick’s age-old role as a true travel crossroads and destination, and set the bar for our hostelry trade and an eventual successor—the Francis Scott Key Hotel.

Born in Frederick in the year 1835, Francis “Frank” Brengle Carlin was the son of James Carlin and Eliza A. Hemsworth.  James worked as a plasterer, but would be appointed one of the corporation’s  town constables in 1826. He held that position for many years and worked closely with fellow constable (and later sheriff) Francis Brengle, after whom he would name his son.
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Young Frank Carlin eventually relocated to Virginia and worked for the railroad as earlier mentioned. He returned to Frederick often, including mid-February, 1858 when he  married Ann Cecilia Sheppard (b. 1837) in Frederick’s Old German Reformed Church parsonage.

​Frank likely moved back to Frederick because his wife inherited a property (at what is now 237 and 239 East Church Street) from her aunt, Mary Gonso, in 1859. They relocated the following year. (As an aside, they would mortgage the property several times in the 1860s, and Ann Cecelia's executor finally sold it to early town realtor Gilmore Flautt in 1917.)

​The couple had their first child, Minnie, in 1860. Sadly, she died in infancy that same year. A second child named Francis Sheppard Carlin came in 1862.

Frank entered into the tobacco business here in Frederick, operating a shop on the east side of the City Hotel and located in the first block of West Patrick Street. This famed hotel had been a principal place of lodging for nearly six decades, having been built in 1804 and originally operated by Mrs. Catharine Kimboll. It would be purchased by Col. John McPherson and John Need in 1861, and later by Allen G. Quynn and I. Alfred Ritter. The cost of the latter gentlemen’s purchase in 1867 was a whopping $19,000. Dating back to Mrs. Kimboll’s tavern, this locale continued to carry the reputation as serving as the principal inn of town, and was about to get better thanks to our subject.

​Being next door to the City Hotel was quite lucrative for Carlin’s tobacco emporium. He likely learned a great deal through his interactions with the City Hotel’s staff and ownership, as he regularly served its patrons with his cigars and other like products.

​This was the turbulent period of the American Civil War, and Frederick certainly experienced this conflict to the fullest. I have seen Frank referred to as Colonel Carlin and was curious as to whether our subject served in the war itself? This was not the case as I learned that he never was in the military, the colonel sobriquet was simply an honorary title. As for the Civil War, I discovered a draft register which showed a notation that Frank had a lame leg. Perhaps this was an old injury suffered on the railway?

​Regardless, Frank Carlin’s lame appendage did not hold him back in the employment realm as his upward trajectory was continuing at a fast pace. I found it very fitting that his surname of Irish origins translates to “little champion.”  An interesting aside found in the old papers was an advertisement involving Frank Carlin in a bit of hot water with Maryland authorities. Apparently the state had brought suit against him for operating an illegal billiard table. The matter was to be decided by the governor, but I didn’t succeed in learning the final outcome.

I'm guessing that the billiard table in question was located in a back room at the cigar store of Mr. Carlin. I next found his name associated with saloons and "the choicest liquors" in 1866. To my surprise, Frank Carlin was working with another hotel that was located around the corner from his shop. In fact, he was now the proprietor of the Dill House. This structure once stood on the southeast corner of North Court and West Church streets.

​In searching back through past Stories in Stone, I realized that I have referenced Frank B. Carlin several times in relation to these upscale eateries and also this hotel that would later take Frank’s name—the Carlin House. Soon, this experience would gain Carlin employment with the City Hotel, Frederick’s most famous “downtown hotel” of the 19th century. 
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In September of 1867, Frank B. Carlin was given the job to manage the City Hotel as the fore-mentioned owners performed renovations, which primarily consisted of the addition of a fourth story in the fall of 1867. The old newspapers of Frederick included advertisements for this outstanding town traveler amenity in each and every edition. The proprietor, Carlin, penned many of these glowing testimonials himself.

​The newspapers also carried reports of special banquets, dinners and other notable occasions held at the hotel under the watchful eye of Mr. Carlin, who gained the moniker of “Mine Host,” which was most likely a play on the German “Mein Host” meaning “My Host.”

​The City Hotel’s restaurant would hold different names over the years. During Mr. Carlin’s association, the restaurant was known as “the Gem” and later, “the European House.” 

​Carlin continued managing both hotels through the 1870s, making him without a doubt, Frederick’s “Champion Hotel Keeper” as an 1879 news clipping referred to him. I particularly took note of Mr. Carlin while researching  a former article of mine written about the booming oyster saloons of Frederick. I stumbled upon the personage of Job K. Sheppard. This gentleman served as hotel clerk at the Dill House in the early 1870s and was Frank Carlin’s brother-in-law (Ann Cecilia Carlin’s brother). I assume Carlin hired (and mentored) Job Sheppard for this post.

There was a very good relationship between these two men, and you could say at one time they practically controlled the hospitality district situated in the 100 block of North Court Street which was book-ended by the Dill House/Carlin House to the north, and the City Hotel to the south. In the middle of the street would eventually be a popular oyster bar/dining house managed by Job Sheppard in 1885. All can be seen to the left side of the map below.

​I also found that Mr. Sheppard was listed as a brewer in the 1880 census, and among the first restaurateurs in town to carry a familiar beer that is still with us today.

​The Carlins can be found living at the City Hotel in the 1870 US Census. Frank was involved in other local activities, notably the Junior Fire Company and the Great Frederick Fair. He would also throw his hat in the political arena.

The Carlins bought, and sold, several properties in the 1880s. Notably, they purchased  5.8 acres along the south side of West Church St. in 1881 from the heirs of Gideon Bantz. (Based on the sale ad for Ann Carlin's properties after her death, she built houses on this property that are now 132-140 W. Church. Ann bought what is now 144 W. Church in 1895. These were all rental properties.)

​Frank was quite ill in the spring of 1882, as he had been diagnosed with Bright’s disease. This malady is an archaic term for what is now referred to as nephritis—an inflammation of the kidneys, caused by toxins, infection or autoimmune conditions. It is not strictly a single disease, rather a condition with a number of types and causes. Frank B. Carlin would finally succumb to this malady on June 27th, 1882.

​Ann Carlin took over his husband's duties of management for both hotel properties. Frank and Ann never owned the City Hotel property, as it was held by Allen Quynn and John Ritter. After Carlin's death, Ann bought a number of other properties. In 1884, she bought 620 N. Market Street (now a parking lot). She bought the Carlin House property in 1886 from Lewis H. Dill, and sold it in 1888 to canning factory proprietor Louis McMurray, who had been leasing it from her. In 1886, Ann Carlin also bought a store on the north side of West Patrick Street to the immediate west of the City Hotel. (This property was later sold to the Frederick Hotel Company which would eventually construct the Francis Scott Key Hotel in 1921-22.)

​Interestingly, in 1888, Job K. Sheppard was given the "job" as manager of the European House, the elegant dining hall associated with the City Hotel. Allen Quynn's heirs and I. John Ritter sold the City Hotel in 1890 to Tilghman Hersperger and Thomas Harwood. The hostelry would receive a makeover under its new ownership and  would afterwards become known now as the New City Hotel. The European changed hands as well and would come to be known as "The Buffalo Hotel and Restaurant."  Job Sheppard proudly served here until his untimely death (at the restaurant) in 1895. His sister, Mrs. Ann Cecilia Carlin, would have him buried in her family lot in Mount Olivet with her husband and two children.

​Ann Carlin apparently lived in the New City Hotel until buying a house at 213 S. Market St. in 1909. The savvy businesswoman died at this location seven years later in 1916.

​The Carlin Family plot and monument in Mount Olivet is certainly one to behold. It particularly looks majestic against a palette of spring or fall colors. I, however, decided to share recent photographs of it in its current attire in the heart of winter.

​My research assistant Marilyn Veek obtained both Frank and Ann's final will and testaments. Of particular interest to me, were directions pertaining to the Carlin’s final resting place. The first item in Frank Carlin's will is a bequest of $100 for Mount Olivet to invest and use the interest to keep his burial lot, grave stones and shrubbery in good repair.

The first item in Ann Carlin's will directs her executor to place a footstone in Mount Olivet like the one already in place for Frank. She also left $500 to Mount Olivet to invest and apply the income for the upkeep of her monument, curbing and foot-stones and other parts of the family lot, replacing whatever needs to be replaced. She also left Emily Sheppard, widow of her brother Job Sheppard, the sum of $500. Ann Cecila Carlin’s properties were eventually sold at public sale.

If anything else, the Carlin gravesite in Mount Olivet’s Area C is certainly that fit for “a little champion,” a man whose monument stands out among the surrounding landscape just as prominent and stately as did the old City Hotel and Carlin House in days of Frederick’s past.

​I’m going to try to tell you this “Story in Stone” at “the speed of light.” And speaking of light and dark, it’s hard to imagine Downtown Frederick without radiating brilliance unless, of course, you visit Mount Olivet Cemetery after sundown. With my old friend Ron Angleberger (owner/operator of Maryland Heritage Tours), we regularly guide people through the cemetery on candle-lit history sojourns in late fall (and certain other times of year). Ron is the true veteran, however, as he has been leading the Downtown Ghost Tours of Frederick for over two decades. The nocturnal ambiance is a little better for cemetery tours, but the side streets of the 50-block historic district make for a perfect backdrop for some pretty cool and chilling tales about people and events from the past.

Another unique night-time feature of Frederick City is the fact that our beloved town mascots, the “clustered spires,” forever keep alive the legacy of Barbara Fritchie and the nonagenarian’s supposed interlude with Gen. Stonewall Jackson and his “Rebel horde” back in September of 1862.

​With the holiday season, our seats of city and county government are illuminated, as are the main thoroughfares of town (Market and Patrick streets) with annual decorating of trees with string lights. Frederick becomes a “festival of light” to use a well-worn cliché. Even the “old town creek” is lit, hosting the maritime players of “Sailing Through the Winter Solstice.”

​Believe it or not, there once was a time when Frederick was “in the dark.” Certainly not figuratively or intellectually, but plain and simply devoid of light. People utilized candles by necessity, and it’s nice to see faux, electric candles these days in so many historic homes as part of holiday decorations. This gives us a glimpse, or should I dare say a “flicker” of what the scene may have resembled in the 1700s and early 1800s.

Prior to the 1800s, lighting of streets was confined to only the most prosperous of communities, and was provided by torches or lamps which burned oils rendered from animal fat. While animal fat lamps were a blessing, they were also a curse, requiring daily scraping and cleaning to remove gummy deposits. With the exception of reflectors to diffuse (spread out) or concentrate the light, few improvements occurred in lamps until the late 1700s.

In the 1780s, a Swiss chemist named Aime Argand invented a lamp with the wick bent into the shape of a hollow cylinder. Such a wick allowed air to reach the center of the flame. As a result, the Argand lamp produced a brighter light than other lamps did. Later, one of Argand's assistants discovered that a flame burns better inside a glass tube. His discovery led to the invention of the lamp chimney, a clear glass tube that surrounds the flame.

During this period, whale oil, because it burned with less odor and smoke than most fuels, and colza oil, an oil from the rare plant, became important fuels for lamps. As a result, a thriving whaling industry developed to provide whale oil for lighting. In the United States alone, the whaling fleet swelled from 392 ships in 1833 to 735 by 1846. At the height of the industry in 1856, the United States was producing 4 to 5 million gallons of whale oil annually.
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Frederick finally “saw the light” in the spring of 1832. A town ordinance authorized the installation of 36 oil lamps. Up until this time, those venturing onto the unpaved muddy streets at night had to take lanterns with them, or rely on the lamps shining from store windows or taverns.

​Enter two former residents who were given the job to show others the way. Frederick diarist Jacob Engelbrecht introduces us to them with a journal entry dated May 21st, 1832:

“City Lamps. The corporation of Frederick some months ago appropriated money for the erection of lamps at the different squares in this City. They are, I believe now completed and this might well be for the first time. Mr. Clement Hilton and Mr. John Haller have been appointed Superintendents or lighters.”
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Now again, these were strictly oil lamps at the beginning. The lamplighter was employed to light and maintain the candle, whale oil and, eventually, Kerosene, known in those days as "Coal Oil", which was much easier to produce, along with being cheaper and smelling better than animal-based fuels when burned. Kerosene also did not spoil on the shelf as whale oil did. Gas lighting would become a reality in the late 1840s, and that is a story for another day and was spurred on by another Mount Olivet resident.

​Lights were lit each evening, generally by means of a wick on a long pole. As depicted below, a lamplighter is climbing a ladder to replenish the oil in the light. At dawn, they would return to extinguish the light. Early streetlights were generally solid candles or oil (and similar liquids) with wicks. These methods would eventually give way to gas lighting.

​So, I went in search of our first lamplighters. I didn’t learn much about their lives, but I did find their final resting places here in Mount Olivet. John Haller is buried in Area D/Lot 52 with his wife Mary Magdalene (Brown). He was born in 1796 and the couple lived in Bentztown, the area of Frederick around the intersection of Bentz and Patrick streets. Haller died relatively young at age 36, a victim of a cholera epidemic that ravaged the city (and country). 

​Unfortunately, John Haller's time on the job was relatively short as his death date is September 22nd, 1832. Originally buried in the town’s Lutheran graveyard on East Church Street extended, he would be re-interred here in Mount Olivet.

​Mr. Clement Hilton, on the other hand, had a bit more longevity to offer in terms of life story. Clement G. “Clem” Hilton was born May 31st, 1779. He was the son of Thomas Francis Hilton, who had connections to Washington County, Maryland. Clemm married Ann Maria Christina Herrlein (1772-1833) on September 12th, 1800. The couple are buried together in the unique Area NN of the cemetery.

​This is where three local congregations removed decedents from the former Presbyterian, Methodist and Lutheran graveyards of town for reburial here around the turn of the 20th century. The Hiltons were part of the Evangelical Lutheran congregation who had two cemeteries on East Church Street, the original behind the historic church and stretching to East Second Street. The one in question, however, was the second burying ground that once existed on the site of today’s Everedy Square. More specifically, this cemetery was located on the southeast corner of East Church Street (extended) and East Street, across from today’s Frederick Coffee Company.

​The bodies, and tombstones, of Clem and Ann Maria Hilton appear to have been moved here in 1907, and are placed tightly next to one another, along with other remains that hail from the ancient Lutheran burial ground.

​Outside of that, Clement can be found in the early census records of town, but it’s been hard to discern his occupation until that of town lamplighter in 1832. Through Ancestry.com, I found that the couple had seven known children mature to adulthood, four of which I definitively found buried here in Mount Olivet. These include Ann F. (Hilton) Cole (1803-1877) in Area R/Lot 98; Henry Konig Hilton (1805-1887) in Area B/Lot 104; Susan Columbia (Hilton) Young (1810-1849) in Area B/Lot 123; and Rosanna E. (Hilton) Boyer (1817-1847) in Area NN/Lot 124.
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The other three Hilton children are Elizabeth R. Hilton (1800-1856), Mary Polly Hilton (1815-1886) and William Herrlein Hilton (1811-1849). I’ve exhausted my search on Elizabeth, was frustrated with my attempt to find Mary Polly, and William Herrlein gave me three options within the cemetery, but the birthdates are from the next generation down (being in the 1840s and 1850s). One of these was a local celebrity of sorts, or at best a town character, who was the son of the fore-mentioned “missing Mary Polly Hilton.” As for Clem’s son William Herrlein (also referred to as William Henry Hilton), I learned that he married a Baltimore girl in Charm City, and actually died in Washington, DC. An obituary says he was brought home to Frederick to be buried in the Lutheran Graveyard.

​My research assistant, Marilyn Veek, found that in 1831, Clement Hilton was indebted to his son Henry for $105, so to secure that debt he sold Henry a cow, a desk, a ten plate stove, four bedsteads, four beds and the necessary bedclothes, three shoats (young pigs), eight chairs, two tables, one looking glass, one meat tub, one large iron pot, a kitchen cupboard, three washing tubs, and all his kitchen furniture. The sale would be void if Clement paid off the debt in two years. Although the deed is marked "paid", Henry sold essentially the same list of items in 1836 to his older sister Elizabeth, to secure his debt of $125 to her. That debt was also paid off.
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Ann Maria Hilton died in 1833 at the age of 62 and was buried in the fore-mentioned Lutheran graveyard on East Street. As for Clement, Jacob Engelbrecht makes mention of additional appointments as lamplighter over the next few years. In 1834, he would be given the additional honor as “market master.” This has nothing to do with stocks, but more with the town Market House constructed in 1769. He was the supervisor of the Market House, which once stood on the site of today’s Brewer’s Alley Restaurant. This structure (and Market Space behind) was the mall of its day, containing stalls that could rented for people to sell their products to the town citizenry. This primarily consisted of farmers and butchers selling their food products. Scales could normally be found here as well in order to measure crop items such as hay, wheat and barley for resale.  The Market House was also the home of early offices for the town of Frederick, and I read recently that a school for girls was conducted here at one point in the late 1840s.

By 1835, Clement Hilton’s sole job was that as Frederick’s market master. In time, he would be given an additional assignment as town messenger. The Corporation appointed him to both posts for consecutive years culminating in March, 1846, two months before his passing on May 21st of that year. Clement Hilton was well respected in Frederick, but must have earned a positive reputation outside of town, as I found his obituary in the Baltimore Sun newspaper.

​Clement Hilton’s son, Henry Konig Hilton, never owned property either, but daughters (with unknown gravesites) Mary and Elizabeth Hilton certainly did. In 1850, they bought a property at what is now 232 East Church Street, which Mary sold in 1871. Pictured below, it is within arms-reach of the Old Lutheran burying ground that would hold their parents—temporarily of course. After residing on Church Street, Mary apparently lived in the United States Hotel, where she died in 1886. This building was located on the southwest corner of All Saints and South Market streets, and still stands today. 

​Mary should be here in Mount Olivet, but I can’t find her grave in our database system. We have a Mrs. Hilton in the mass grave in Area MM which includes re-interments from the All Saints Protestant Episcopal Cemetery brought here in 1913. However, the only bit of information captured from an ancient tombstone (which no longer exists) was that this woman died on November 11, 1821. This is not our Mary, but could it be Clem’s mother? Presumably born in 1732, I doubt it, but could be wrong. I’d love to be able to identify the woman therein.

I strongly think Mary Polly Hilton was buried at the Lutheran Cemetery, but had no gravestone, and was unfortunately lost in the move. A gentleman named Bill Hilton created a FindaGrave.com memorial page for her connected to our cemetery back in 2012 (Mary Hilton (1815-1886) with appropriate links to other family members we have discussed here. Perhaps Bill Hilton had information, or family lore, that we don’t? Our main precursor for a burial is an interment card, which we don’t have for Mary Polly Hilton.

In doing a little more genealogy in my search for Mary Polly Hilton’s gravesite, I came up with the fact that she had a son. However, this gentleman would continue the family name of Hilton and was named for his maternal uncle who I theorize lived, died and is buried in Baltimore or DC. I could not locate a father, who may, or may not, have married Miss Mary Polly Hilton. The child, William Herrlein Hilton, has also turned up as William Hugh Hilton in certain records. He was born on New Years Eve of 1841.

In addition to being a “Baby New Year,” I soon realized that I had made a connection to a gentleman I had stumbled over before. He is prominently pictured in one of the Historical Society’s photo books, and was the subject of a Frederick Magazine article in 2004. He is best known as “Uncle Billy,” and pulling on the holiday theme, I don’t know if his was truly “a wonderful life.”

​Uncle Billy Hilton was also captured in the poetry of Folger McKinsey, the Bentztown Bard who started his career in Frederick and transferred to the Baltimore Sun.

​We are lucky to have two photographs of Uncle Billy. The first is part of Heritage Frederick’s amazing collection and was taken by Charles Byerly. It is featured in Frederick County Revisited, published by the Historical Society of Frederick County (aka Heritage Frederick) in 2004 with the caption included.

​Another photo was included with the 1976 Bicentennial supplement of the Frederick Post. A story told of Uncle Billy’s unique operation of selling pretzels around town. He was certainly a town legend of yesteryear—maybe not holding the national prestige of Bryan Voltaggio, but in a time without radio, television and social media, he was pretty darn close on the local level.

​Uncle Billy also had flaws, and this was well known. He was frequently drunk and had mishaps that were covered in the paper. He continually made trips to the Montevue Hospital and home north of town.

​One such event led to a rumor reporting that Uncle Billy was dead. This was quickly debunked. Billy Hilton did get really sick in 1914 and passed on August 10th, 1914. He outlived his mother and wife, and apparently was estranged from son, Maurice Clement in Pennsylvania. It was thought that “Uncle Billy” would be buried in a pauper’s grave at Montevue. However, Frederick’s sitting mayor (Lewis Fraley) and a leading attorney (Leo Weinberg) could not let such a “shining light” as “Uncle Billy” not be buried in Mount Olivet. They would garner the amount necessary ($35) to bury Uncle Billy with dignity in proximity to other relatives.  

​“Uncle Billy” Hilton is in Area M/Lot 26. This particular part of the cemetery, north of Confederate Row, was once called “Stranger’s Row.” This was a place for destitute individuals and unknown guests to town who unfortunately expired while here and far from family and native homes. He has never been given a gravestone, but his mortal remains are here among others of the same plight.

As Hilton family member’s “life lights” were illuminated, they were also naturally extinguished in due time. The same fate will soon take the beautiful holiday lighting from our homes, city streets and creek. But don’t worry, there’s always next holiday season in 11 months, and it will be here in a flash.

2022 is coming to a close.  I’ve heard so many friends of late long for the proverbial “good-old days” when our lives had the backdrop of happiness, and a less stressful existence, or at least the power to make it that way. The New Years holiday of my youth and younger days came with less personal responsibility of course, but capped the "hap, hap, happiest time of the year," and gave us pause to reflect over the past 365 days with admiration of the accomplishments, events, blessings and, most importantly, interactions with fellow humans. 
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Robert Burns’ immortal song “Auld Lang Syne” is synonymous with New Years Eve, as it can be commonly heard at the stroke of midnight. The title translates to "times long past." Believe it or not, this tune was once a popular choice sang or played at funerals as well. It is quite fitting because the song begins by posing a rhetorical question: “Is it right that old times be forgotten?” The answer is generally interpreted as a call to specifically remember long-standing friendships and, in particular, those friends.

Alternatively, the word "Should" may be understood to mean "if" (expressing the conditional mood), referring to a possible event or situation. Regardless, in this era of chaotic world events and cancel culture, we frequently chose to forget, villify or discount people, places and happenings.

As a professional historian and "memorialization lobbyist," I protest the erasing of the past. We must always remember and take life lessons from past events and those involved. Perhaps as a cemetery employee, it may seem trite to share with you that my favorite quote is one  from the German philosopher Friedrich Nietzsche: “What doesn’t kill you, makes you stronger.” Challenges and discomforts should be remembered  just as much as triumphs as part of the total human experience. They should stick with us, be learned from and continually inspire us. They can provide support and confidence for future situations, often having the ability to provide answers if we utilize our heads to think critically. We can figure out anything over time.

Working in a cemetery, I often hear the term "soul" bantered about, which is defined by Merriam-Webster as "the immaterial essence, animating principle, or actuating cause of an individual life. This is the spiritual principle embodied in human beings, all rational and spiritual beings, or the universe." In layman's terms, your soul is the part of you that consists of your mind, character, thoughts and feelings. Of course from a religious or spiritual bent, many believe that your soul continues existing after your body is dead. 
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This is why the song "Auld Lang Syne" has the power to stir emotions galore, especially on this last day of the year, if you allow yourself to follow its instruction. That in mind, (both literally and figuratively), I am fortunate to research and explore the events and souls of our past through the portal of gravestones resting above the mortal remains of people that lived in "times long past." 

For this week's story, I  decided to look deeper into Frederick's history and former residents as it pertained to our current holiday by exploring the scene through the lens of those living in it "real time."  I arbitrarily chose to pick New Years Day, 1873—150 years ago.

In a way, we have certainly come so far, and have a tendency to dismiss those situations and people of yesteryear because we have technological advancements those people could likely never have dreamt of. That said, we possess the tools to immediately access the most powerful gift of all, information. However, we seem to think that our smartphone (and its litany of apps and access to the worldwide web) is the key to everything. It is a great help, but we need to keep in mind a way to work without it from time to time. What is paramount is an individual’s brain, and the opportunity in all of us to think critically. This is not only the impetus responsible for creating the universe of gadgets around us, but the key to using said technology and advancements for the best and enlightening purposes to assist in informing and entertaining mankind.

People of past times had brains too and could critically think as well, and did not have the crutch of a smartphone in their back pocket to Google any answer they desired. They had ingenuity, a term seldom used, but one I employed to title my college application essay to the University of Delaware back in 1985. Defined as the quality of being cleverly inventive or resourceful, I learned this word, and moreso concept/quality, from my parents, teachers, and friends as those several generations before had done. We also sought answers from these things called books, and if not available, we sought out other human beings that were labeled as “well-read" and knowledgeable. 

To get a flavor of the year 1872 from a world perspective, read Jules Verne's adventure novel Around the World in Eighty Days as it was published in that particular year. (Note: PBS aired an 8-part series based on this work in in January 2022.) Here are just a few of the "headlines" of that particular year:

*February 20 – The Metropolitan Museum of Art opens in New York City.

*March 1 – In the United States, Yellowstone National Park (once dubbed "Colter's Hell" after John Colter, of the Lewis and Clark Expedition) is established as the world's first national park.

*March 26 – Lone Pine earthquake shakes eastern California in which 27 people are killed and 56 injured.

*The magazine Popular Science is first published in the United States.

*May 10 – Victoria Woodhull becomes the first woman nominated for President of the United States, although she is a year too young to qualify and does not appear on the ballot.

*May 22 – Reconstruction: U.S. President Ulysses S. Grant signs the Amnesty Act of 1872 into law, restoring full civil rights to all but about 500 Confederate sympathizers.

*July 4 – The Society of Jesus is pronounced illegal in the German Empire.

*September 26 – The first Shriners Temple (called Mecca) is established in New York City.

*The Virginia Agricultural and Mechanical College begins its first academic session (the university is later renamed Virginia Tech).

*The first case is reported in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, of the Great Epizootic of 1872 (equine influenza, or the "horse flu") which will substantially disrupt life in North America by mid-December.

*November 5  Ulysses S. Grant defeats Horace Greeley in the 1872 United States presidential election

Women's suffrage: In defiance of the law, American suffragist Susan B. Anthony votes for the first time (on November 18 she is served an arrest warrant, and in the subsequent trial is fined $100, which she never pays).

*November 9 – Great Boston Fire of 1872: In Boston, Massachusetts, a large fire begins to burn on Lincoln Street (the 2-day disaster destroys about 65 acres of the city, 776 buildings, much of the financial district and causes $60 million in damage).

*November 13 – Claude Monet begins painting Impression, Sunrise (Impression, soleil levant, the painting that will give a name to Impressionism) as viewed from his hotel room at Le Havre in France.

*November 29 — American Indian Wars: The Modoc War begins with the Battle of Lost River.

*November 30 – The first international Association football match to be recognized (retrospectively) by FIFA as "official" takes place at Hamilton Crescent, Scotland; the result is Scotland 0-0 England. Earlier international football matches had already taken place in 1870, in 1871 and again in 1872 at the Oval, London.

*December 21 – Challenger expedition: HMS Challenger (1858) sails from Portsmouth, England, on the 4-year scientific expedition that lays the foundation for the science of oceanography.

Interestingly, both presidential candidates had visited Frederick, and particularly the Great Frederick Fair, in previous years. Ulysses S. Grant came in 1868 and 1869. His competitor in the 1872 election was the man who first uttered the famous quote: "Go west young man." This was Horace Greeley,  the famed New York Tribune newspaper editor. Greeley delivered the agricultural address in 1871.

​In addition, it was during this year of 1872 that universal public schools were called for and a few legendary Civil War heroes, with special ties to Frederick, died. One of these was the impetus for our very own National Museum of Civil War Medicine, Dr. Jonathan Letterman, American surgeon, and "father of battlefield medicine" (b. 1824). The other was Gen. George Gordon Meade, who was given charge of the Union's Army of the Potomac at Prospect Hall just days before the Battle of Gettysburg. Both men had traversed the city streets of Frederick a decade earlier.

​I often get lost in reading old newspapers, something that can be accomplished with a remarkable technological advancement of its time—microfilm. I have to admit that I am also spoiled to have the ability to read old newspapers online with subscription services to historic editions of local newspapers. 

Perusing vintage papers remains one of the most rewarding pursuits for knowledge, information and entertainment for me,  and I feel like a time traveler who, of course, knows the future that these individuals did not know yet at the exact time of publication.

Now let's get back to the star of this article, the January 1st edition of the Frederick Examiner newspaper. Here was the editor’s note of good cheer for the new year, as he summed up the past one.

​The last line of the article states a firm purpose, “one that the gift of a new lease of time will fulfill every duty and for the health, peace and happiness of our fellow beings.” I love that sentiment and wish that for all in the upcoming year. I couldn’t find out what exactly happened at midnight, perhaps church bells were rung? Even though he may have been around then, Dick Clark did not provide a Rockin’ New Year’s Eve because there were no televisions, radio, or Rock ’n’ roll for that matter. Of course, I kid, as Dick Clark was not born until 1929. But I am so thankful that I had him usher in new years for me from 1972 until 2012.

I bet Downtown Frederick had revelry, drinking and caroling. Apparently, the town hosted an annual masquerade parade on New Years Day according to an article in the 1873 edition. I’m sure it was a far-cry from Pasadena’s Rose Parade, but it was exclusively Frederick, and that’s all that counts.

​I wanted to make connections to the cemetery with this exercise, and I found five great ones. As a matter of fact, I soon pictured myself in mind in a terrific vantage point—standing in Mount Olivet’s Area D, up near the Key Memorial Chapel. I have included the  map below as a guide because I know most readers don’t see the cemetery like I do as a series of lettered Areas and numbered lots.

​William Blake was laid to rest in Area H/Lot 87. Although this is a few hundred yards distance from George Murdoch’s final burial place of Area G/Lot 49, its very close to Murdoch’s first “home” in Mount Olivet as one learns from reading George Murdoch’s obituary in the January 1st Examiner newspaper of 1872.

​Mr. Murdoch passed on Christmas Day of 1872, but with the ground being too hard to dig because of snow and cold weather, his body would be placed in a new accommodation to the cemetery in 1871—the Public Vault. This building once stood on the fore-mentioned site of the Key Memorial Chapel. This structure kept loved one’s bodies in cold storage until better weather for hand digging as there were no ditch witches and mechanical apparatus at the time to dig graves in the frozen ground. Sometimes, families had to wait until the spring thaw for the proper burial of their decedent in the family lot.

​The Public Vault slowly lost its importance and necessity in the early 1900s as the cemetery acquired mechanical digging means. This gave way for the construction of a mortuary chapel at the request of cemetery lot-holders who desired the opportunity to have a dignified indoor service on cemetery grounds. You may recall that most wakes of the earlier time period occurred at the decedent’s home, and the undertaker led the funeral procession from there to Mount Olivet where a graveside service occurred.

One of those busy undertakers here in Frederick at the time was Clarence Clarendon Carty (1847-1911), who recently opened his business, which also centered on furniture-making, a few years prior. An ad of his appears in the four-page version of the New Year’s Day Examiner.

​I have documented Mr. Carty’s life in an earlier edition of Stories in Stone. He drove by Mount Olivet’s Public Vault many times each week, delivering bodies to family lots for proper burial. He would die in 1911, just prior to the construction of the Key Chapel, however this structure (as was the Public Vault before) is in plain sight of his grave. He is buried cat-a-corner from the chapel in Area A/Lot 62 between first wife Joanna and second wife, Ann Catherine. 

Two final comments on the fore-mentioned Public Vault. The basement of today's chapel was the same belonging to the vault. The iron front doors (seen in the earlier image) were kept and still exists as they were re-installed in said basement. The cupola that once adorned the Public Vault was repurposed for the original kiosk, or gazebo, that once stood in between Areas T, U, S. That structure stood from 1915 until the early 1950s. This past year of 2022, we erected and dedicated the Mount Olivet World War I Memorial Gazebo on that very spot within T, U, and S and invite you to visit next time you find yourself in the cemetery. This project was part of the Mount Olivet Preservation and Enhancement Fund, an IRS recognized non-profit charity, and fundraising efforts conducted by our Friends of Mount Olivet membership group. We hope to raise additional funds in 2023 to add three NPS-style, tabletop interpretive exhibits.

​In addition to the World War I Memorial Gazebo, another great accomplishment for our preservation arm came in the form of an interpretive exhibit at the gravesite of Frederick's legendary diarist Jacob Engelbrecht in Area H.  This occurred back in June as part of our annual Flag Day Author's Lecture and can be found not far from the Key Chapel along the central cemetery drive in Area H. Thinking back on this, I wondered what Jacob had to say about New Years Day, 1873 in his legendary journal.

This son of a Hessian soldier captured during the American Revolution, kept a journal of Frederick daily events from 1818 up through his death in 1878. He, of all past residents, was certainly familiar with the importance of "Auld Lang Syne," as he actually embodied it! ​In looking up his entry for January 1st, 1873, I would soon find one of his most poignant and solemn posts:

"Death—I have now to record the death of my wife, Eliza Engelbrecht, who died day before yesterday at 5 and 1/4 o'clock PM at the age of 69 years 6 months and 26 days being born June 4, 1803. She was the daughter and oldest child of John and Rebecca Ramsburg who lived near town (about 1 mile due west from the courthouse). We were married "May 29, 1825." So we lived as man & wife for nearly 48 years. But death came at last and I know not when I shall be called away. The Lords work will be done. She was buried this afternoon at 3 o'clock at Mount Olivet Cemetery."

Jacob Engelbrecht
Wednesday, January 1st, 1873 at  9 and 1/2  o'clock PM.

​I must confess that I had already been tipped off, however, because I had seen Eliza Engelbrecht’s obituary in the Examiner of January 1st, 1873. As Jacob wrote, she was laid to rest here in Mount Olivet on New Years Day, having died on December 30th.

​Now, I know that keeping up with my  random and rambling  nature of leading you through history here in this article could be considered (by some) "like pulling teeth" as the old expression goes. And so said, that is the perfect segue to another advertisement (or two) found in the January 1st Frederick Examiner. 

​Dr. Lloyd T. MacGill, Sr. is buried in Area A/Lot 80, with the Key Chapel is in the background. Dr. MacGill was one of Frederick’s early men of the profession. He graduated from the Baltimore College of Dentistry in 1851 and had a long and successful career spanning 57 years. His office in 1873 was located on the north side of East Church Street, within his home residence across from the mansion of Col. Charles E. Trail (today's Keeney & Basford Funeral Home).  MacGill went on to influence other practitioners, including his son, Charles, who followed in his footsteps and took over the operation of his office.  

​For good nature, I thought I would interject that Dr. Edward Bowlus (1834-1902), whose advertisement was below that of Dr. MacGill, is buried in Mount Olivet too. He can be found in Area Q (Lot 92), even though this fact deviates from my theme of concentrating on people buried within the proximity of our Key Chapel and having their names prominently  appear in the newspaper of New Years Day, 1873.
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Finally, I will wrap up with the news story that fascinated me most from 150 years ago. It has all the imagery of "olde-towne" Frederick in all its seasonal majesty. All you have to do is use your mind to imagine the snow-covered streets, with candles burning in windows and people using the best transportation for the setting—horse drawn sleighs. Let this article set the mood, before I come to my masterful finish.

​Just like a picture-print from Currier and Ives! I’ve seen a couple of images that help paint the picture of Frederick at that time.  We can only imagine "Oh what fun, it was to ride in a one-horse open sleigh" through the streets of town.  A brilliant photograph from Frederick's "sleigh ride" past can be found on page 96 of Gorsline, Whitmore and Cannon's Pictorial History of Frederick (originally published in 1995). This photograph was taken by noted photographer J. Davis Byerly and was provided by Mrs. Frank Kelly for the book.

The caption below reads: "Church Street sleigh ride, circa 1893. Sebastian G. Cockey, at the reins, pauses for photographer J. Davis Byerly in front of the Methodist Episcopal church on the first block of East Church street. Son Sprigg Cockey and daughter Miss Nannie (later Mrs. John Brosius) join Cockey for the winter's day ride. (Note: the former church site is the home of a parking deck, and the first rowhouse in the background is the former Frederick Visitor's Center, and today's headquarters for the Frederick Downtown Partnership.)

Mr. Sebastian G. Cockey (the white-bearded man to the left in photo) was a farmer who, in 1873, resided at Evergreen Point directly south of Frederick City and Mount Olivet. His farm is denoted by his name (S. G. Cockey) on the 1873 Titus Atlas Map. 

Mr. Cockey lists his profession as farmer in the census, but I found that he also served as Frederick County's Register of Wills from 1867-1873. Sebastian Graff Cockey was born in 1811 and was one-time owner of the Landon House in Urbana during the American Civil War. A merchant at the time, Mr. Cockey hosted Jeb Stuart's famous Sabers & Roses Ball on September 8th, 1862. I only figured this out thanks to my unusual memory and love of local history, just now remembering standing in line in my younger years of the 1990s at the Frederick County National Bank branch on Rosemont Avenue. On the wall was a print by artist Dale Gallon which depicted the ball and was titled "Sabers & Roses."

​This beautiful illustration (published in 1989) captured my imagination and I almost bought a copy for myself. The caption Mr. Gallon included under the scene was as follows:

"Urbana, MD, September 8, 1862 – After saying goodbye to Anne Cockey at a ball in Urbana, MD, on Sept. 8, 1862, J.E.B. Stuart and his men attack and drive off nearby Yankee raiders."

Sebastian G. and both (grown) children pictured above during the sleigh ride are buried in the family plot in Mount Olivet's Area G/Lot 128. I question the date of the Byerly photograph being 1893 for the sole reason that Mr. Cockey died in 1888, and son Sprigg died in 1892. Sufficed to say, the photograph above had to be taken in the 1880s.

However, thanks to my brain, memory, writing this story, and previous knowledge/research of Frederick history, I venture to say that the young debutante drawn by Mr. Gallon (talking to Gen. J.E.B. Stuart) was none other than Miss Nannie Cockey in the back seat of the sleigh. Born May 15, 1846, Nannie's given name was Ann Worthington Dorsey Cockey. She would later marry John Brosius, but likely never forgot dancing with the legendary Confederate cavalry commander. Talk about "Auld Lang Syne!" (NOTE: Here is a link to read more about the print and 1862 "Sabers & Roses Ball" event )

​All of us familiar with hills and sledding understand the thrill that can be had with help from gravity to increase speed potential. Of course, horses aren’t involved. What about those horses traveling down hills in slick conditions with ice and snow road cover? I’m sure that was a dicey situation that required great command and patience by drivers. Another challenge came in navigating hills from bottom to top. I think immediately of parts of Bentz Street, South Street, and, most of all, South Market Street. This major thoroughfare was the main route in and out of Frederick and part of the Old Georgetown Pike.

​The Cockeys and others would navigate their sleighs up and down “Cemetery Hill,” denoting the incline from the intersection of South and South Market Street, up past the Barracks/Maryland School for the Deaf sight, and terminating at Mount Olivet’s front gate as the apex. And yes, Mount Olivet can boast the highest elevation in Downtown Frederick.

​Sledding has never been advised (let alone allowed) in Mount Olivet with obstacles that (if hit) could place you here permanently. However, I'm assuming that traversing a snow-covered South Market Street could have been a thrill, or a terror depending on your perspective. Our Frederick Examiner newspaper of January 1st, 1873 includes one of the latter, but thankfully no one wound up in the cemetery. Well, not until years later for the individuals involved.

​Mr. John Myers is by all accounts John Myers III, born 1798 in Taneytown. I simply found him in the 1880 Census living as a widower with his son James and family on North Market Street. His background seems to have been farming. Mr. Myers would die 11 years after the sleigh ride mishap in 1884, while staying in Washington, DC. He is buried in Area A/Lot 14, basically 20 yards equidistant from Dr. MacGill and undertaker C. C. Carty.

​Mr. Myers' esteemed partner in this two-horse sleigh mishap, Horace Clarke, was the son of Col. James C. Clarke who we have wrote about on many occasions as a transportation giant. Col. Clarke is the namesake of Frederick’s Clarke Place, located nearby conveniently off South Market on what could also be technically considered the unofficial, geographical landform of Cemetery Hill.  Interestingly, Horace Woodward Clarke would take up residence on this prestigious street which opened a few decades after the sleigh accident in the 1890s.

Born on September 27th, 1855, Horace was a native of Baltimore and lived in various parts of the country where his father served as president of major railroads. These included Chicago, New Orleans and Mobile, Alabama. He lived at 16 Clarke Place, and many may have heard of stories of the road being among the first in town paved with cobblestones. Not wanting to hear the clackety-clack of horse hoofs leading milk wagons down this street, gates were put up on both ends. I presume this also thwarted sleigh traffic as well. With the advent of automobiles at the turn of the century, sleighs faded from sight—kept alive in our imagination through those songs we have heard once again a thousand times over the last 4 weeks and suddenly disappearing for the next 11 months as they always do.

​Outside Myers and Clarke, another individual’s name appears in connection to the ill-fated Sleigh Ride of New Years 1873. Edward Sinn (1819-1902), is only yards away from all these folks, residing in Area H/173. The article states that a team of four horses parked in front of Sinn’s Livery could have been a cause of the sleigh accident, and thankfully these horses didn’t break free to cause additional pandemonium in Downtown Frederick that fateful night.

​I swear to God, that the instrumental Muzak version of “Sleigh Ride” is playing on our mausoleum sound system as I write this last paragraph here on Thursday, December 29th at exactly 5:45pm . Unfortunately, those surrounding me cannot attest to my claim, but I just took some A/V proof with one of those newfound technologies that we are so fortunate to have on the advent of 2023. (see video at end as it is video of the Mausoleum atrium...sorry about the fountain)

No sleigh rides for anybody in Frederick this past December. The New Years holiday is a little too mild for snow as it brought rain on New Years Eve. However, we sure felt Arctic cold temperatures a week prior.

Happy New Year to you all, and thank you for continued support of our ongoing preservation efforts at Mount Olivet which includes these Stories in Stone, gravestone repair and cleanings, Veteran events such as flag-planting for Memorial Day and Veterans Day and Wreaths Across America, and continued remembrance of those buried here through lectures, walking tours and visitation. "Auld Lang Syne"....join us in remembering the people and events of the past, the true essence of cemeteries and memorial grounds.

​I sit here in my office back at the mausoleum building contemplating the event that just happened--Wreaths Across America 2022. With the assistance of an estimated 600 volunteer participants, we placed wreaths on the graves of 4,383 veterans buried here in Mount Olivet Cemetery. I’m still surprised that we gained the necessary sponsorship to cover all of our “eligible” vets. When I say eligible, I mean gravesites able to accept wreaths because we have many veterans that are buried in settings that don't accommodate a live evergreen.

We have 134 former military personnel either entombed, or inurned, within our three mausoleum buildings. In this instance we have placed a wreath on a stand outside each building to honor the sum within. Meanwhile, 408 Confederate soldiers are buried within a mass grave at the end of Confederate Row. One wreath now marks this spot, while 306 wreaths were placed on the upright graves of Southern soldiers who died in Frederick during the American Civil War and were brought here.

A year of wreath sales, months of planning, events such as the Veterans Day flag-planting, and recent weeks/days of section vet counts, ceremony choreography and chaperone assignments have all culminated in an enjoyable event.  We also had sunshine for the first time too!
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Most importantly, we honored our veterans for a third major time in 2022 following our annual Memorial Day and Veterans Day exercises.  It happened in a flash, it always does, and I’ve been hard-pressed to capture the true magic with images on a smartphone. The smiles on our participant’s faces say so much, but I can only imagine what those “resting” veterans, themselves, would think, along with their respective families?—thoughts of seeing complete strangers decorating graves— years, decades, and in some cases, centuries after their deaths.

​We were not alone in performing this activity. As many know, Wreaths Across America originated at Arlington National Cemetery down the road, and happened simultaneously at over 3,400 additional locations throughout the United States, and at sea and abroad. Like ours, each site boasts a host of dedicated volunteers and wreath sponsors celebrating WAA’s mission of Remembering, Honoring and Teaching through the placement of special wreaths on veteran graves.

​As emcee of this event each of the last five years, I have the opportunity to infuse a little “veteran history” each year as part of my welcome and opening remarks. In case you are curious, here is a synopsis of what I said after introducing myself this go around and asking the audience to indulge me as I give a brief cemetery geography and history lesson. I began by pointing out cardinal direction points from our vantage point of Mount Olivet’s World War II Memorial in Area EE, dedicated on Memorial Day, 1948.

“Mount Olivet is no stranger to patriotism and US military history as our most recognized resident is the “pop star” of the War of 1812—Francis Scott Key. He was also a veteran of that conflict, fighting at the Battle of Bladensburg, but is known more for his song-writing than military prowess. By geographic terms, he is our northernmost star, both literally and figuratively, as his grave is just inside our front gate entrance. Not far away, in Area G, lies Francis Scott Key’s father, Capt. John Ross Key. He was a participant of the American Revolution, and a friend to George Washington.

​Nearby is another flag flying over the grave of Whittier’s heroine Barbara Fritichie. She eye-witnessed both the American Revolution and War of 1812, and likely met both TJ and FSK in real life, or at least saw them on the streets of Frederick. Dame Fritchie was in her early 80s during another conflict, the Mexican War of the late 1840s, and some of you will be decorating their graves today. Ms. Fritchie is best known for her “participation” in the American Civil War. No, she didn’t wield a weapon, but did wave a flag at the enemy, or so they say.

​ The flag flying over her grave now waves within sight of hundreds of Civil War veterans, both Union and Confederate. Confederate Row itself contains over 700 that died during the war, and there are plenty here from both sides that survived the war, but would be interred here later.

​One known Civil War combatant went on to serve in the “wild west” with the United States Second Cavalry. His name was George Late Tyler, and he primarily served in the Montana Territory in the 1870s at such places as Fort Ellis and later Camp Custer. When you decorate his grave, take notice of his beautiful marble monument in Area E, complete with hand-sculpted military uniform accoutrements such as a helmet, sword, belt, spurs and riding gloves.

​In Area P, one of you will have the privilege to honor Jesse C. Claggett, Maryland’s only “Rough Rider.” Private Claggett rode under Col. Teddy Roosevelt, and stormed San Juan Heights with the future president in the summer of 1898 during the Spanish-American War.

​In the cemetery’s midsection, also within sight from our vantage point here, many of you will decorate graves of World War I veterans buried in areas S, T, U, AA and LL. They surround our newly constructed WWI Gazebo and Never Forget Garden which honors not only those who participated in what was commonly called “The Great War,” but also all prisoners of war and missing in actions. We just dedicated this in late October and have an upcoming goal of more fundraising in an effort to add interpretive panels to this site in an effort to tell more of these World War I veteran stories.

​We find ourselves here in Area EE and most of you are standing in Area CC. These, and surrounding cemetery areas to our south, possess tremendous numbers of men and women who participated in our military branches throughout the 20th century, including World War II and the Korean War.

To the west, going back toward our mausoleum complex is what we call our new, or modern, sections. You will find yet more WWII and Korean War era vets, but also those men and women who participated in military service up through present day. This also includes events such as the Vietnam War and conflicts in the Persian Gulf and Middle East.

​Speaking particularly of Vietnam, one of you will have the honor of decorating the grave of Lt. Daniel S. Brittain, a Frederick High graduate turned Marine. Lt. Brittain has the unfortunate distinction of being Frederick City’s first casualty of the Vietnam War. He breathed his last breath in that far-off country. Daniel S. Brittain was killed in the Danang Province on, of all days, Memorial Day 1966. He is buried in a family lot in Area AA, along the central drive through the cemetery. Interestingly, buried in the lot next lot over (and along the road) is famed fashion designer Claire McCardell, a revolutionary in her own right, who was recently honored with a statue on Carroll Creek.

​Every veteran here in Mount Olivet, and every cemetery in this country and abroad, has a “life story.” They say you die two deaths. The first is when the physical body shuts down, and it no longer ceases to work. We are all familiar with that. However, the true “death knell” is when we are forgotten—nobody remembers our name anymore, or what we did—no one visits our grave anymore.
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Based on this secondary “cause of death,” each of you possesses the unique opportunity to bring the memory of over 4,300 people, veterans, back to life today. You will be saying their name before placing a wreath on their gravesite. Take note of that name, remember that name, at least throughout the rest of today and the weekend, perhaps even longer.”

​As I said earlier, wreaths were distributed and placed in a diligent, efficient and reverent manner here today. It was again a humbling experience and quite a sight to see. I’ve tried to include many visuals for you, the reader, in this particular blog for that very reason. I encourage you to make a trip to the cemetery in the next week (if you are able) in an to see the “wreath coverage.” It ranks up there with three other visual spectacles involving our historic, garden cemetery, but dictated by seasonality. Mount Olivet when spring has sprung, Mount Olivet draped in fall foliage and Mount Olivet after a snowfall.

Apart from the wreaths of honor associated with the Wreaths Across America program, Mount Olivet is also decorated for the holidays at this particular time of year. Relatives make annual pilgrimages to give their loved one’s a “festive holiday feel.” This also happens at Easter, and in some cases, Halloween and Thanksgiving as well. The psychological underpinnings of this practice are rooted in the fact that the activity of grave decorating provides a great way to combat grief at these special and emotional times of the year. The gesture represents perhaps a form of “gift-giving” to a decedent by a grateful family. Outside of religious connotations, isn’t the key to the holidays at this time of year (Thanksgiving, Hanukkah, Christmas, and New Years) to remember others and count one’s many blessings among challenges?
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Our cemetery staff decorates our mausoleum buildings with Christmas trees, which afford family members to place ornaments in memory of loved ones who are inurned in these spaces. Christmas decorations can be found everywhere on the grounds—courtesy of others. Some are very tastefully done, while some are a bit tacky to my taste—but to each their own. Cemeteries house the deceased, but exist for the living. It’s all about remembrance and keeping “their” spirits alive.

​This past week, one such gravesite has continued to weigh heavy on my mind due to its unique overlap of both fashions of cemetery decorating—veteran and holiday. That place is the grave of the fore-mentioned Daniel S. Brittain, U.S. casualty of the Vietnam War. This is what gave me cause to specifically include him in my opening ceremony remarks as I had originally intended just to talk about our new World War I Gazebo and the cemetery’s historic section veterans who have not received wreath coverage in previous years because of not having enough wreaths. (Note: In past years, we made the decision to concentrate our available wreath inventory on the newer veterans, and respective sections, on the middle, south and modern segments of Mount Olivet.)

​The Dutrow/Brittain family plot in Area LL (Lot 97), where Lt. Brittain is buried, is a site to behold. Two pine trees are a permanent part of the endowment for this lot. Lt. Brittain’s individual gravesite usually dons the Marine Corps flag, and an American flag year-round, but now has a small “Christmas” tree placed next to his elevated ground marker, trimmed in Marine Corps colors. A few feet behind, one can find a custom-made wreath on a stand, boasting smaller versions of both the fore-mentioned flags, and a laminated attachment resembling a bookmark. On its face is a pencil-drawn image of Daniel S. Brittain, with a poem typed out below.

​I was inspired to search for any information I could find on this young veteran, struck down in the prime of life—he was only 23 years of age when brought to the grave in May of 1966. This was only eight months before my birth in January of 1967.

​Lt. Daniel Spencer Brittain
It is interesting to note that a veteran who died on Memorial Day, was born just one day previous to Veterans Day. That event took place on November 10th, 1942 for parents Warner Lloyd “Mike” Brittain and his wife Dorothy (Dutrow). The front page of the local paper included news of conflict and activity associated with the Second World War. In this same newspaper, I discovered an article talking about an upcoming dance that was being presented as a fundraiser for much needed war bonds. Warner Brittain was the chairperson.

​Mr. Brittain was a native of Pittsburgh, PA and had come to Frederick, presumably for work. In a case of “chicken or the egg,” I’m not sure if love provided employment, or employment provided love. You see, Lloyd Brittain worked as a provisions manager for Frederick County Products, Inc., a firm operated by President and General Manager Daniel T. Dutrow—Dorothy’s father.
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Warner and Dorothy married in 1940, and from what I can tell, lived with Dorothy’s parents at 27 Rosemont Avenue at the time of our subject Daniel’s birth. I saw this address associated with Warner’s WWII draft registration and a Frederick residential directory from 1946. In the 1950 US Census, the extended family of three generations lived on Fairview Avenue. Daniel and his parents and three brothers would eventually move to East Patrick Street.

​Young Daniel attended local schools. I know for a fact that he attended Frederick High School as I found his class picture on Ancestry.com. I strongly assume that Parkway was his elementary school. It hits home a bit because I currently live in a nearby neighborhood, and my son went to grade-school at Parkway. 

​Daniel also attended Mercersburg Academy in Pennsylvania prior to high school graduation. This is what likely led to his acceptance into a collegiate Marine Corps training program. This would occur at Oklahoma State University in Stillwater, OK. Brittain graduated in 1965 and immediately embarked on his career in that particular military branch. Tragically, it would be cut short the following spring.

​A joyous life moment, however, took place in early 1966. Daniel Brittain was married to the former Barbara Strayer of York, Pennsylvania. The couple had been engaged since 1963, having met here in Frederick where Barbara was attending Hood College. I found newspaper clippings of both engagement and marriage events in papers associated with Frederick and Miss Strayer’s Keystone State hometown.

​Second Lieutenant Daniel S. Brittain served with Company C, 1st Battalion, 9th Marine Regiment, 3rd Marine Division, Third Marine Amphibious Force. On the 30th day of May, 1966, his unit was taking part in heightened action in the hill country southwest of Da Nang in the Quang Nam Province. His obituary reported that he died of gunshot wounds to his chest.

​As I said in my remarks, Lt. Brittain was the first Frederick man killed during the Vietnam War. The newspapers carried his obituary on June 2nd, and subsequent articles in later days provide more context to his body’s return home, and funeral services.

​An additional sadness associated with this death came with the obituary stating that Lt. Brittain had a daughter, Catherine Virginia, born just one month earlier. This must have been an incredible inspiration for Lt. Brittain while in the midst of duty to God and country amidst the warfare in eastern Asia.
Lt. Daniel S. Brittain was laid to rest on the Dutrow family lot, originally bought for his maternal grandmother, Emma M. (Spencer) Dutrow. The businessman/grandfather for whom Daniel was named, would join Emma and Lt. Brittain here three years later in 1969. Brittain’s father would pass in 2000. I will include the obituaries of Daniel Dutrow and Warner L. “Mike” Brittain’s obituaries at the end of this article because they give context to the family and community service that this brave Marine hailed from. 

​During my earlier days at Frederick Cablevision’s Cable 10, I recall meeting “Mike” Brittain on a few occasions. More so, I remember Lt. Brittain’s young bride Barbara, a beautiful woman who appeared as a guest on some of our local television programs representing Families Plus, a local non-profit group of which she served as director. I assume the custom wreath with the poem is the work of Barbara, Catherine and subsequent grandchildren and family members. My hope is that they will see this “Story in Stone” one day and add information and memories about Daniel in Comment Section below as a lasting online tribute to this former Frederick native and everlasting hometown hero the likes of Key, Johnson, Fritchie, and McCardell in the next lot over.

I envy the participant who had the honor to place the Wreaths Across America wreath on Lt. Brittain’s gravesite yesterday. So much so, that later in the day, I took the wreath off, walked about 20 feet away, and then re-approached the grave. I said Daniel’s name, and gently placed our WAA wreath back on his stone. His spirit and family can take solace in knowing that at least two total strangers are remembering not only his name this weekend and throughout the holidays, but also his honorable duty and deeds in the name of our country. 

​I next did the same exact thing for Charles Shaw “Carl” Simpson buried 20 yards east of Lt. Brittain in Area AA’s Lot 92. Born in 1893 in Pennsylvania, Carl Simpson grew up in Frederick not far from my childhood home in Indian Springs, northwest of town. I was introduced to his life story, while writing my own for him in September 2018 entitled “An Uncertain September.”  

​Private Simpson was a member of the US Army’s  79th Division and served in Company L of the 313th Infantry Regiment, comprised of Maryland boys. He lost his life in eastern France during the Meuse-Argonne offensive on September 26th, 1918. Like Brittain, Simpson died far from home, but his mortal remains were brought back here to Mount Olivet, where they have been properly cared for, decorated, and remembered  by not only cemetery staff, but by a selfless community of volunteers both at present and well into the future. May these volunteers continue to give of their time and thoughts by visiting the graves and saying the names of Lt. Brittain, Private Simpson and thousands of others resting in peace on Frederick’s Mount Olivet Cemetery.

13,657. No, this is not the population of people interred in Mount Olivet, as we have over three times this number (41,010 at last count). Instead, this tally reflects the amount of emails that were currently in my work email mailbox when the following query came in on Monday, December 5th (2022):

Chris, my name is Don Sincell, and I am the mayor of Mountain Lake Park in Garrett County. I was referred to you this past summer by Kelly Russell, a city official for Frederick, whom I met at the Maryland Municipal League convention in Ocean City. My great-great-grandfather, a blacksmith/wheelwright, migrated to Garrett County in the mid-1800s from Frederick. So I have several relatives who are buried at Mt. Olivet, one of whom was Andrew Sincell, a cousin multiple times removed.

In the grave record book at the cemetery it states that Andrew was “officially shot by Sgt. ‘somebody’” in 1855. I forget the shooter’s name. Andrew was just 25 when he was killed. My question is, why was he “officially shot?” Was he a military deserter? Was he a criminal caught in the act of wrongdoing? Was he perhaps someone who got caught helping an enslaved person(s) escape to freedom? I have tried to find out the answer, but have been unsuccessful to date. Kelly said that if anyone could get to the bottom of it, you could. It’s also noteworthy that Andrew’s mother is buried next to him, and her death occurred within months of Andrew’s. Died of a broken heart?
Just as I love introducing readers, visitors, and lecture audiences and walking tour participants to the lives of those buried here at Mount Olivet (that I’ve had the privilege to research), my greatest thrill is the opportunity of having others introduce their ancestors to me. 

This is one of those “opportunities,” and I will solve this “history mystery” for Don before your very eyes in this week’s “Story in Stone.”
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The first thing I did was look for Andrew in our cemetery database.  Here, I found three individuals by the name of Sincell, including an Andrew whose vital dates matched up perfectly to the info that Don had provided in his email above.

​Our records show that Andrew Sincell was born on May 21st, 1830 and died at age 25 on August 7th, 1855. He was buried the next day in Area H/Lot 6. “Easy-peasy” so far! Before we go further on Andrew, I want to explain what I found upon looking closer at the other Sincells interred here. I found an infant Charlie Sincell buried in Area A/Lot 47 on January 1st, 1866. This individual was the child of Charles H. and Leah “Fannie” (Richardson) Sincell who would eventually leave Frederick and re-locate to Garrett County. A write-up on Mr. Charles Henry Sincell appears in the following online transcription from a Garrett County history from 1884 and saved to an Ancestry.com family tree.

​Charles H. Sincell (1838-1884) was a younger brother to our chief subject Andrew, and both are related to the third Sincell in our database—Anna Margaret Sincell, also found in Area H/Lot 6. Anna is the mother of both Andrew and Charles and lived from September 14th, 1797 – February 23rd, 1856. This woman, like Andrew as I found, was a native of Germany. From what I can tell, they hailed from Hesse-Cassel based on a record relating to Andrew’s older sister Katherine in our database.

Anna M. Sincell died six months after Andrew, so Don Sincell’s theory of Andrew’s mother dying from a broken heart is certainly plausible in this case. Another note on this gravesite is that I have been here before. In June of 2017, Superintendent Ron Pearcey and I actually lifted Anna’s stone up after being face down for a number of years—an unfortunate, yet common, occurrence in our historical part of the cemetery. We had come to repair and clean another nearby gravestone brought to my attention by an email from a family genealogist in upstate New York who was also hunting the whereabouts of a distant cousin left behind in Frederick as the family migrated to Ohio in the 1860s. We had leftover D2 solution after cleaning this first grave, and Ron suggested we use it up on Anna Sincell’s grave. In doing so, we had to prop Anna’s tall marker against a neighboring gravestone.

Two things of note would happen soon after. First of which was exactly three days later on a Friday afternoon close to closing time of the office. Multiple ladies entered my door and asked for the location of an Anna Sincell. I recognized the name instantly! They had come from different parts of the country for a geneology quest of the country as I recall one from California and another from Florida, and another from the Midwest. I was so excited to lead them to this gravesite in person, and reveled in the serendipity of the moment as this marker had been face-down just three-days earlier.
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The second event regarding Anna’s grave came with its re-setting in October 2019 as part of a preservation workshop hosted by our newly-formed Friends of Mount Olivet group and featured noted gravestone expert Jonathan Appell.

​Anna had five other children that I could find: Margaret (1828-1869 and married Christian Getzendanner), Katherine (1835-1905 and married William Blumenauer), William Henry (1835-1905), John Charles (1840-1899) and George (1842-unknown). All five boys cam be found living with their mother in the 1850 US Census.

​Anna’s husband, Henry, apparently died around 1842 and his grave whereabouts are unknown, but could have been buried in one of the two Lutheran graveyards of town that were in use at that time. He was a blacksmith by trade, and appears in both the 1830 and 1840 census with a variation on the spelling of the name that many  believe originated as “Sentzell.” That said, they may have come to Frederick around that time, as Andrew’s birthplace is said to have been Germany.

So after finding a few pertinent census and baptismal records on Ancestry.com, I consulted Jacob Engelbrecht’s diary before going any further. I found exactly what I was looking for on page 779 with an entry the diarist made on August 7th, 1855:

"Shot-Andrew Sentzell was shot last night 12 o’clock PM by Police officer John H. Pope, it happened at the house of Ann R. Newport, up street. Pope had a process against him, for a long time already – but he left town and was working on the railroad – last evening he came to town & Pope met him at the above house, when he informed him of the writ he had against him, when an altercation took place – Sentzell drew a knife and attempted to stab Pope when Pope shot him with a pistol in the groins. Pope was tried before the proper authority this forenoon & honorably acquitted. Sentzell lingered until about ½ past one o’ clock this afternoon when he died. S. was “tight,” his age was 26 years – has a wife & was married only a few months."
Tuesday August 7, 1855 2 o’ clock PM
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Two newspaper articles would back up Engelbrecht’s account. (I’m sorry about the poor quality of the following Frederick Examiner account. I have transcribed it below).

​Andrew Sincell was buried in Mount Olivet the following day of August 8th, 1855. However, he was not buried in Area H in the same lot number 6 as his mother. His tombstone is in Area K, about 50 yards north in lot 58 just a short distance off one of the cemetery’s driveways. This area came known to be “Stranger’s Row” and was a burial place for many infants and children of the town’s destitute of the late 1800s and early 1900s. Also buried here were indigent visitors and lodgers who died in town far from home, or were of unknown origin. Lastly, situations like this one. I assume that he may not have been allowed in the Lutheran burying ground because of his unsavory manner at the end, but it could have been a monetary strain for his widow and mother to obtain a burial space. Somehow, $3 cash was received by the cemetery but why was Andrew placed in Area K (where his stone stands) instead of Area H where his mother would be placed just four months later?

According to the timeline, Andrew would be the first buried here, followed by Union soldiers during the American Civil War. They would be removed to Sharpsburg’s Antietam National Cemetery in 1867. These “recycled graves” would go to strangers in the decades to follow.

Trust me, Ron Pearcey, my research assistant Marilyn Veek, and myself pondered this at length and even made a visit to both gravesites with interment records in hand. Andrew’s stone was familiar to us since it was cleaned this past summer, but our volunteers in doing work on Findagrave.com notice the discrepancy of this man’s gravestone being far from where our records claimed it to be. Could his remains be in H next to his mother? One theory we had was that Andrew could have been buried in H originally, but was bumped over to Area K later.

Interestingly none of Anna Margaret Sincell’s biological children are here with her. The Sincell lot in Area H/Lot 6 was purchased by John and Martin Sincell. I haven’t figured Martin out, but John is likely her son of the same name. He would eventually re-locate to Washington, DC, which is where other sons, George and William, would follow. Next to Anna Margaret Sincell is buried Christian Getzendanner (d. 1863), her son-in-law. This was the stone that Ron and I propped her gravestone upon before later re-setting it. Christian’s wife, Margaret went to Indiana and remarried a gentleman named Babcock. Remaining daughter Katherine Blumenauer is buried with husband George in Mount Olivet’s Area C/Lot 153.

There is one person of immense interest to this whole episode buried just feet away from Anna Margaret Sincell. In lot 10 of area H, one will find the gravesite (and an impressive monument) of John H. Pope—the man who fired the fatal blow to Andrew Sincell. Location, location, location as they say.
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Officer Pope continued his work as an “independent officer,” appointed by the city to serve throughout the 1850s, and into the 1860s. This job is also referred to as a constable. He performed this role in addition to conducting a tobacco shop and is often mentioned in the old town newspapers. 

The "cigar-maker" also has an illustrious past as a "slave-catcher." He sought to use his position in taking full advantage of the 1850 Fugitive Slave Act passed by Congress. In 1854, the year before the Sincell altercation, Pope announced the formation of an "independent police and detective force" in northwestern Maryland made up of what he called "an efficient force of spies" to detect and capture escaped slaves.

​The Pope family last lived on the southeast corner of N. Market and 8th streets in a three-story brick house that has housed a laundromat on its first floor for many years. After the American Civil War, it appears that John H. Pope eventually hung up his pistol for a gavel. Although he served at one time as a bailiff and lawyer, Pope would not sit on the Frederick bench as a judge, but used said gavel in accordance with conducting an auction house business in the mid-1860s.

​John H. Pope would move his wife Caroline (Doll) and children to Baltimore a few years later and that is where the 1870 US Census finds them living. He died in June of 1874 and was brought back home to Frederick for burial.

​That leaves two more individuals that were part of the story. I was unsuccessful in figuring out the identity of Andrew’s wife “of two months.” I’m sure she moved on with her life with little issue. The other is Ann Rebecca Newport, purveyor of a house of ill-repute according to the Frederick Examiner article describing the shooting incident. I learned that she lived on the northeast corner of W. 5th and N. Bentz streets (129 W 5th St ). I didn’t find much other than census records, however the 1860 record is a gem, as it actually lists Miss Newport’s occupation as a "bawdy house keeper."

​Somewhere along the line, our Frederick madam had married a man named John McKechney and can be found living in Baltimore with her son Luther as head of household. He was running a “notions house” for what it’s worth. Ann died on June 23rd, 1872 and her house was put up for sale by her brother Christian Newport, executor of her estate.

Par for the course with this whole story, there is more intrigue when it comes to our cemetery records. We do not have an Ann R. McKechney among our interred, however we do have an Ann Rebecca Newport listed as buried here. The problem is that her gravesite is unknown.
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Oh well, Mayor Don, I hope I did you proud? Thanks so much for introducing me to "Cousin Andrew" and a cast of characters involving a notorious slave catcher and an early Frederick madam. As for Don's immediate family line, they have done very well in western Maryland. Don's great-grandfather, Benjamin Sincell (1869-1947), had an outstanding career as a newspaper publisher. This native-born Fredericktonian moved to Garrett County with his parents (Charles H. Sincell and wife Leah “Fannie”). Of course, you may recall me mentioning Benjamin's brother, the one- year-old child named Charlie who is buried in Mount Olivet's Area A.

​What the heck happened to November? It seemed to be nothing more than a flash after a beautiful and mild October by our Maryland standards. I distinctly recall Thanksgiving, Veterans Day, and a few football games here and there, but wow. Perhaps it lies in the fact that being a lifelong Phillies fan, I was simply engrossed in a magical time warp which lasted throughout the month of October and the World Series, known as the October Classic, was mostly played in November? 
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Whatever the case, I’m sure, you, like me, had no idea that we missed a pivotal commemoration at the start of the famed 11th month, which I found out actually derived its name from the Latin word “novem” which means nine. November was originally the ninth month of the early Roman calendar, but I digress. The special day in question (that I missed) was November 1st, none other than “National Cremation Day.”

​Well, since I’m a cemetery employee, you certainly have more of an excuse than me to let this particular date get by you. And don’t worry, you didn’t miss much as there were no parades, special meals, gift exchanges, special church services, firework displays, or people wearing a certain color in honor of the practice of cremation. However, that’s not to say that some of these activities did not occur—because they did for another reason.

All right, much of the previous rant was “tongue-in-cheek” as most of our readers know me by now. November 1st was designated as National Cremation Day back in fall of 2018. This date was chosen wisely as it actually falls on All Saints’ Day, and is sandwiched between two days with “life-long” associations with cemeteries and burial grounds.
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In the Christian tradition, All Saints’ Day is a festival honoring all the saints, both known and unknown. It is renowned in Mexico as it begins a celebration known as the Day of the Dead or Día de Muertos in the Spanish language. This is a multi-day holiday that focuses on gatherings of family and friends to pray for, and remember, lost loved ones, and to help support their spiritual journey. People go to cemeteries to be with the souls of the departed (children on the 1st and adults on the 2nd) and build private altars containing the favorite foods and beverages, as well as photos and memorabilia, of the departed. The intent is to encourage visits by the souls, so they will hear the prayers and the comments of the living directed to them. In places around the world like Mexico, celebrations can take a humorous tone, as participants recount funny events and anecdotes about the departed.

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​Many Americans celebrate All Saints’ Day, typically by attending special church services. It only seems fitting here in Frederick to do so as our town’s Protestant Episcopal congregation has shared the name of “All Saints” (All Saints’ Church) since the towns founding back in the mid-1700s. And yes, this group’s original house of worship, complete with burying ground, gave rise to the street name located adjacent their former property along Carroll Creek.

​Let's get back to National Cremation Day, shall we? It finds itself following the American tradition of Halloween, celebrated the day/night before (November 1st) on October 31st. Of course, this unofficial holiday has been heavily commercialized with candy and costumes, and for some reason keeps many people as far away from cemeteries as possible because of the unfounded narrative of creepiness. On the other hand, November 2nd is All Soul’s Day, an open invitation to visit burial grounds. Also called The Commemoration of All the Faithful Departed, All Souls’ Day is a day of prayer and remembrance for the faithful departed and observed by certain Christian denominations on this date since the 10th century. Through prayer, intercessions, alms and visits to cemeteries, people commemorate the poor souls in purgatory and gain them indulgences.

​Now that we know the significance of the date, what is the true significance and purpose of National Cremation Day? This was my thought a few years ago as I read articles about its creation. The main purpose given is simply to point out the fact that the practice of cremation has revolutionized the funeral and burial industry over the last few decades. Nationally, cremation has overtaken burials for the past six years, but Maryland has lagged slightly behind, according to data from the National Funeral Directors Association. In 2020, the association showed cremation rivaling traditional burial at a rate of 50%.
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The Cremation Association of North America (CANA) reported the cremation rate has grown more than 100 percent over the past eighteen years, from 25 percent in 2000 to almost 53 percent today. In some states, the rate now exceeds 70 percent. A bit of online searching showed me that Japan leads the world at 100% cremation of its residents with several neighboring Asian countries close behind. India is at 75%. On the other hand, the country of Romania has a 1% cremation rate. Here at home, Nevada leads the United States at 81%, followed by Maine (80.2%) and Oregon (79.5%).

​What’s behind these dramatic changes? Is this simply a factor of people breaking with family and faith traditions of the past? Or, is it a result of economics and the transitory nature of Americans? Most analysts say it’s due to three major reasons: the high cost of traditional funerals; the growing secularization of Americans; and the increased interest in green end-of-life solutions.

The recession of the late 2000s certainly contributed to change as cremation had always been seen as a cheaper alternative to traditional burial. Add to this the fact that casket prices rose over 230 percent from December 1986 - September 2017 according to the National Funeral Directors Association (NFDA). An urn, is an economic alternative, but in many cases, families opt for the minimum of placing the provided container/box from the funeral home/crematory within mausoleum niches and small plastic vaults required for traditional burial of cremains. Like the casket, it will be unseen into perpetuity unless you choose a glass-front niche.

The NFDA also indicate that fewer Americans today are looking to include a religious component in their end-of-life planning. A couple of decades ago, about 95% of Americans reported belonging to a religious group. Today, it’s more like 75%. And fewer Americans are actively religious. According to some studies, the percentage of “regular churchgoers” may now be as low as 15%. Religious tradition and services had centered on traditional burial for centuries in western culture. Breaking with tradition is a brave thing to do for some.

​Based on its nature, cremation certainly creates a quandary with “the Green movement” because of emissions. Just as there is green burial, there is a new “green cremation” technology called Alkaline Hydrolysis, or “Aquamation.” It is legal in 21 states (including Maryland) for humans, but from what I read, nowhere in Maryland is set up for this yet. This process does not require incineration, but instead emulates what happens in nature, where water and time helps to decompose the deceased. But instead of requiring decades, the process takes around 3-4 hours.

As you can see, cremation has certainly impacted the industry. In the same vein, it has also uniquely changed the way public grieving and memorialization is conducted by giving more options that are not time-constrained. If anything else, the decision to cremate generally allows time for the family to make decisions about a memorial service and plans for a final resting place if this hasn’t occurred already. Individuals may not have to make immediate travel plans to the scene of burial as was always the case with immediate burial within days after death. However, the suspension, or pushing back, of closure could bring its own issues, but this is a conversation best led by a grief counselor or licensed psychologist.

We here in the cemetery business are seeing an issue of people getting over their grief, but sometimes not acting in a timely or responsible manner in carrying out the decedent’s orders by putting them in a proper resting place. More on that in a bit.
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From personal experience, I have lost both parents. My father was buried in traditional manner and we had two wakes and a full funeral service in the three days after his passing. My mother was cremated upon her passing, and my brothers (living in Orlando and Brooklyn respectively) and I hosted a memorial service six months later. My folks had different approaches toward their end-of-life planning and I look back at both services being comforting send-offs. The lasting thing for my siblings and I is knowing that we carried out our divorced parents final wishes on how, and where, their mortal remains would be placed and memorialized.

​My father is buried in his hometown of Delaware City, Delaware, only feet from his parents and grandparents and other relatives in a small-town burying ground. It’s located across the street from his boyhood home, currently the house of his brother, last living member of Dad’s immediate family.  My mother lived her final decades outside of Shepherdstown, WV. One of her biggest loves of her life was her church, St. Agnes Catholic Church, where she was an ordained altar-server.

In the mid-2010s, the Shepherdstown church announced plans to build a columbarium on their grounds and she shared this news, and her desire to be placed here, with me. I accompanied her on a few trips to observe the construction, and she was always excited to show me her outdoor niche. However, I never would have thought that we would be placing her there only a year and a half after its completion.
Cemeteries are for the living they say—responsible for providing a dignified place for those buried within its grounds. They are to be a comforting place for visitors, and places of contemplation and reverence.

One of my oft repeated lines to history lecture and walking tour participants is this. They say you die two deaths. The first is the obvious failure of the human body and shutdown of the vital organs and brain. The second (death) is the true death blow, and that involves people not saying your name anymore, or visiting your grave, or remembering that you walked the earth. That’s why I like visiting cemeteries, and writing/telling these stories about those buried, and inurned, here at Mount Olivet.

I recently came across a blog by a lady named Katie Thornton that gave me reason for pause. In her article entitled “Why Cemeteries Tell us More About the Living Than the Dead,” Ms. Thornton says:

”Most monuments to history are created in a top-down manner. Individuals “earn” (in inverted commas) a place in our mainstream retelling of history through a combination of notable deeds and substantial social privilege. Cemeteries are, in theory, more representative archives; in these spaces, individuals and families are given an opportunity to etch their own names into the annals of history.

But in order to write oneself into the cemetery’s archival landscape, one has to be allowed there. Globally and throughout time, people have been (and continue to be) prevented from erecting markers—or excluded entirely from certain cemeteries—based on their inability to pay, or their race, ethnicity, class, religion, gender, sexuality, and illness/disability. So, while cemeteries may be more egalitarian archives, they are archives no less. As such, they bear many of the shortcomings and conspicuous vacancies of more formal repositories of history, like museums and monuments.”

​Today, all individuals are welcome to be interred and memorialized here in Mount Olivet Cemetery. Now we are operating as a business, so there are costs involved. But the opportunity exists. I’ve also seen where those costs have influenced some people to cut corners, or in some cases, not carry through plans made by the decedent. This could be due to financial hardship, but sadly in some cases it is because of laziness and in yet other very unfortunate cases, family fighting or greed is to blame. Existing rifts, coupled with the potential for financial gain through estate inheritance can do terrible things to some families. 

This time of year, many a home will be decorated with holiday stockings hanging from a proverbial mantel and recent phenomenon of “elves on shelves.” But there are plenty of homes where Santa must use specific care upon recovery from chimney drops (with bags of toys) as not to disturb loved ones in the form of cremains placed on mantels and shelves.

​Now, I don’t mean to offend, as I understand that the grieving process requires this in some cases with certain individuals and no judgement here. However, I do get a little “weird-ed out” by people that say they have no better place to store Aunt Betty, or will get to finding her a better place at some point later in the future. And what if that point doesn’t come? Will people move urns of cremains around from home to home like kid sports trophies and childhood trinkets? What happens if Grandpa Herb is dropped, lost, or forgotten when his cremains got stuffed in a plastic storage bin with old college books and childhood baseball card collections?

I can hear some people laughing, or simply saying, what’s the difference in the bigger picture. Well, I simply ask not what you would think if these ashes were yours, (because you may not care) but what about the decedent? What were their thoughts and wishes about final resting place, memorialization and level of reverence? To each their own, but I don’t want my ashes tossed about like a football or packed away and unpacked on several moves. Eventually this could lead to somebody down the line throwing me in a dumpster, or dropping me on a city street. Again personal choice, but remember I come from this from the context of having a career based on celebrating and remembering those no longer with us. I strive to keep people from experiencing that poetic, second realm of death-dom of simply being forgotten forever.

​Four years ago, we were approached by our good friends at Stauffer Funeral Home with a conundrum. We were told of a situation they had on their hands involving "orphaned cremains." They had a closet-full of packaged cremains and urns that had not yet been claimed, most dating back decades. This included multiple individuals, all well labeled, but possessing no eternal home and final resting place.

As I just said, these cremains (people/loved ones) had simply never been retrieved for proper inurnment, burial or mantel placement, if anything else. Stauffer did not accumulate these remains on their “business watch” as these were inherited through their acquisition of the former Robert E. Dailey & Son Funeral Home. Stauffer felt a profound obligation to find a proper “final home,” and reached out to us for help.

A solution came into view with the idea of purchasing a communal crypt space in our main chapel mausoleum. Stauffer purchased a location, and provided a casket to house 61 individual cremains. This exercise allowed us to record each of these individuals for posterity in our interment books, giving them a permanent resting place in a reverent and respectful manner. I was really impressed by this gesture by Stauffer, finding a tasteful solution to a problem that had been on the table (literally and figuratively) for years. Soon after, Keeney & Basford Funeral Home would follow suit by also purchasing a cryptspace in our mausoleum for their “orphaned cremains.”

​When our Superintendent was creating interment cards and entering these individuals in our books back in 2018, I randomly picked one of the names and decided to conduct some biographical research work. The name I pulled was that of Marion Louise MacPhail.
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Unlike my usual hunts to learn about those possessing memorial “stones” in the cemetery, these people have no physical monuments built to them, or plaques showing their names. Moreso, I wondered why no one had picked them up from the funeral home?
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Even in the earlier days of Mount Olivet, we had an area called “Strangers Row,” where unknown or destitute visitors to town or individuals were buried. This had to be done, as there was no other recourse to humanely deal with a corpse at a time predating cremation. Sometimes, family members, friends and acquaintances would never know the whereabouts of an individual—especially if they were “estranged.”
This situation with orphaned cremains sort of reminded me of that situation, but I’m sure factors of procrastination, laziness, destitution, and family dysfunction could have also played a role in abandoning these cremains.

​Marion L. MacPhail
She’s now coded as burial #39663 in our Mount Olivet records system, and the box that holds her cremains simply includes her name and a cremation number given by Cedar Hill Cemetery in Washington, DC, where the process was conducted. Marion Louise MacPhail was 83 years old at the time of her death in November, 1980 and that's all we knew upon receiving her cremains from Stauffer Funeral Home.

Imagine my surprise when,  with a simple Google search, I learned that this box contained the mortal remains of the woman whose name is synonymous with an annual award given to Hood College students since the early 1970s! THE MARION MACPHAIL PRIZE is awarded to a senior major in Spanish who is not a native Spanish speaker and has not lived in a Spanish-speaking country for more than three months prior to entering Hood College. This award is given in recognition of proficiency in the Spanish language.

My heart sunk as I said to myself, how could a collegiate-award namesake have her ashes left in a closet for decades? Now this wasn’t Hood College’s fault, and perhaps there is no one to blame, but I wanted to learn more about this interesting lady and her life once lived.

​Born on March 22nd, 1897 in New York City, Professor MacPhail was the daughter of Malcolm Russell MacPhail (1864-1941) and wife Janet Louise (Woodburn) MacPhail (1868-1945), both immigrants of Canada who moved to Brooklyn, New York around 1890. Marion had one brother, Walter Russell (1902-1971), and spent her childhood years in New York where her father worked in banking.

​I learned from Malcolm MacPhail’s obituary (published in 1941) that the family moved to Charlotte, North Carolina in 1914. From here, Marion would be readily prepared for her future with higher learning. She attended Agnes Scott College in Decatur, GA, followed by a return to New York City to obtain her Master’s degree from Columbia University. Additional studies took her abroad to the University of Madrid in Spain, the University of Grenoble in France, and the Middlebury School of Languages in Middlebury, VT.

​The first mention of Marion L. MacPhail in Frederick, MD came with a listing of new faculty members for Hood College for the fall semester of 1926. She is listed as an Assistant Professor of French. This began a career that would span 40 years over the next four decades. She would retire as associate professor emerita of modern languages in 1966.

​Over this span, she taught Spanish as well. I found her living on Dill Avenue with the family of John Grove in the 1930 US census. A decade later she would reside on Elm Street. Both locations made for an easy commute to her day job. She seemed to spend many holidays and early summers going home to North Carolina.  

Here are a couple articles found in the local papers that give a hint to Miss MacPhail's activities as an educator that took her out of the classroom to give students special learning experiences.

​I reached out to my friend Mary Atwell, Archivist and Collections Development Librarian for Hood College for some assistance. She sent me some images of Miss MacPhail from Hood yearbooks and also a  questionnaire for the school's Publicity Department filled out in 1943 which shed more light on this learned lady’s educational credentials among confirmation of vital information I had already gleaned.

​I found plenty of mentions of Marion in the local newspapers of yesteryear. Most were faculty listings and school-related activities as you would imagine. One of the earliest included news of her return from a summer break trip to France and Spain. Her students would be enriched by her tales of travel and everyday use of the languages she taught them.

​Professor MacPhail also educated the community with programs presented to area civic clubs, illustrated with photographs taken abroad.

​Marion would never marry, but was always surrounded by youthful spirits in the form of the “Good Girls” from Hood. I also came across a mention that at least one summer (1950) she spent as a housemother for a camp in North Carolina.

​Here are a few more articles found in Frederick papers and images from Hood yearbooks.
It appears that Miss MacPhail was extremely active in a group called the American Association of University Women, and was a member of the Frederick chapter. She held many positions including president, treasurer, membership chair and served as a delegate to national conferences.

​Lastly, I found a few other tidbits on Miss Marion in the paper from her testimonial for the Knights of the Round Table motion picture starring Richard Burton, to an unfortunate hit and run fender bender a few blocks from school a few days before Christmas (my first I might add).

​Professor MacPhail retired in 1966, and continued involvement in local Frederick activities and assisting the school that provided her with a career of 40 years. Interestingly, her replacement was Miss Charlotte Moran, who too, was a former graduate of Middlebury College in Vermont like her predecessor.

​Arrangements and a memorial service were handled by Robert E. Dailey & Sons Funeral Home, once located on N. Market Street, now home to the New York New York Hair Salon and Day Spa. The burial was said to be private, but as we can see, it never occurred. Interestingly, Marion L. MacPhail’s name, birth and death dates appear on a ground level cemetery marker in Charlotte, North Carolina’s Forest Lawn West Cemetery. You can also call up her memorial page on Findagrave.com. Was there a service there, just without the “guest of honor?”

​So what happened? Or better yet, what didn’t happen?  We may never know. She was the last of her immediate family. I just wonder if Marion desired to be buried in North Carolina, or if it was an assumption planned by her parents, but never followed through? Is she truly “Home for the Holidays?” As a language teacher, fluent in the Spanish language, and well-versed in the customs of Mexico like “The Day of the Dead,” perhaps we can get the answers by communing with Marion next November 1st—or 2nd. At least she is not in a file drawer or storage closet.

​I'm sure all are special in their own way, just like the 41,000 others interred here within "Frederick's Other City" as they used to call Mount Olivet. I will say that we have been able to remove a few cremains from the Stauffer crypt in an effort to give homes elsewhere on our grounds. Once such, John Thomas Pitts, was moved a few weeks ago upon the death of his mother. Both were buried next to his father in an old family plot located in area R/Lot 55. (As John Thomas Pitts' cremains were removed from the Stauffer crypt, I was afforded the opportunity (with access to the opened crypt) to photograph Marion MacPhail's cremains for use with this story.)

​Mr. Allen’s widow, Marie Angelina (Verona) Allen apparently never retrieved her husband from Dailey’s Funeral Home before her death in June of 2020 at the height of Covid-19 quarantine lockdown. She was in a nursing home and as was the case with so many people, communication and visitation opportunities were stifled by safety protocols. The Allens had four sons, two lived in Frederick, while the other two lived in Colorado and New York respectively. Plans now were discussed to take action with a cemetery, however a concrete timeline couldn’t be established because of the pandemic. Of course, Dad fell through the cracks years earlier, well not figuratively as he actually stayed intact throughout the move to Stauffer Funeral Home and storage therein at their location on Opossumtown Pike.

I  think its safe to assume that all these orphaned cremains are "home for the holidays." Consider the shelf for elves and other keepsakes, and not human cremains. Thank you Stauffer Funeral Home, Keeney & Basford, and those family members that have the "aha" moment to dignify decedents with reverent resting places.

"We've got another holiday to worry about. It seems Thanksgiving Day is upon us." These were the words uttered by the immortal icon of my childhood and many others—Charlie Brown. Renowned cartoonist Charles M. Schulz gave us a classic work in his 1973 A Charlie Brown Thanksgiving that still holds its important message to this day nearly a half century after its first airing.

The day in question, one beloved by millions of Americans, and naturally despised by just as many turkeys, is celebrated on the fourth Thursday of November, but began as a state holiday rather than a federal one. Thanksgiving’s origins saw it as a day of celebrating the year’s harvest, with the theme of the holiday revolving around giving thanks and the centerpiece of celebrations being a Thanksgiving dinner.
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Of course, the special dinner traditionally consists of foods and dishes indigenous to the Americas, namely turkey, potatoes (usually mashed or sweet), stuffing, squash, corn (maize), green beans, cranberries (typically in sauce form), and pumpkin pie. This is not exactly what Snoopy and Woodstock served up to Charlie Brown, Linus and other Peanuts characters in the 1973 classic, but what really are our expectations when at the mercy of animal chefs forced to utilize foods readily at their disposal including toast, popcorn, pretzels and jellybeans?
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That clever cartoon special teaches a simple lesson that focuses on what the day (Thanksgiving) is truly about—who we spend Thanksgiving with is far more important than the quality, or amount, of the food we eat on Thanksgiving. Many of us don’t truly grasp this concept until we lose someone who had shared the holiday dinner table with us year after year, such as a grandparent, parent or sibling.

​As many readers know, I spend a great deal of time in old newspapers in an effort to learn about the life and times of my subjects for these “Stories in Stone.” It’s sort of being like a time traveler, as I can see events from history playing out in real time, knowing of course how they end. I was searching through papers dating from the 1880s and found the passage above talking about Benjamin Franklin and his interest in origins of Thanksgiving.

​Many may recall that Ben Franklin also had a fondness for wild turkeys, so much so he put forth the species nomination to become our national bird. Franklin praised the turkey as “a bird of courage” and a “true original native of America.” He also said it was a better representative of the new country than the bald eagle, which he called “a bird of bad moral character” that steals fish from hawks and “a rank coward” easily cowed by sparrows.

​The Wikipedia explanation of Thanksgiving offers a summary stating that New England and Virginia colonists originally celebrated days of fasting, as well as days of thanksgiving, thanking God for blessings such as harvests, ship landings, military victories, or the end of a drought. These were observed through church services, accompanied with feasts and other communal gatherings.

​The event that Americans commonly call the "First Thanksgiving" was celebrated by the Pilgrims after their first harvest in the New World in October 1621. This feast lasted three days and was attended by 90 Indians of the Wampanoag tribe and 53 Pilgrims (survivors of the Mayflower).  Less widely known is an earlier Thanksgiving celebration in Virginia in 1619 by English settlers who had just landed at Berkeley Hundred aboard the ship Margaret.

​Thanksgiving has been celebrated nationally off and on since 1789, begun with a proclamation by President George Washington after a request by Congress. Apparently, President Thomas Jefferson chose not to observe the holiday, and its celebration was intermittent up through the 1850s.
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Maryland began celebrating Thanksgiving as an official state holiday after Gov. Thomas Ligon’s proclamation of 1856. At this time, there were 17 states that followed the tradition at this level. That number would grow to 21 by the decade’s close. Mind you that there were only 33 states at that time.

​As I was searching through the newspapers of fall, 1883, I came across a later proclamation from a lesser-known president having sole discretion over dictating the date of the Thanksgiving holiday as Lincoln’s successors had before him. This was President Chester A. Arthur.

November 29th was a departure back to Lincoln’s spirit of the holiday being at the end of the month. In 1869, President Ulysses S. Grant had moved the date to the third Thursday of November. Things got more serious as to the date when, in January of 1885, an act by Congress made Thanksgiving, and other federal holidays, a paid holiday for all federal workers throughout the United States. In 1942, while engaged in World War II, Thanksgiving received a permanent observation date as set by an act of Congress. Without the discretion or interference of the president, Thanksgiving was slated for the fourth Thursday in November. This holds true up through today.

​1883
The year 1883 was fairly, uneventful in the annals of US history. However, here in Frederick, something happened that was extremely “newsworthy.” This featured the emergence of a new newspaper offering, fittingly entitled “The News.” Founded by William T. Delaplaine, the Great Southern Printing and Manufacturing Company took responsibility for publishing this new paper which commenced on October 15th.

​I purposely set out to glean any mentions of Thanksgiving tradition and happenings in our town in the Frederick Daily News’ first year. In addition to the two articles I’ve already shared involving Ben Franklin and Chester Arthur, I found a warning that the town market would be closed on Thanksgiving day so customers were warned to be proactive with obtaining their turkeys for dinner.

​I also saw that the upstart publication made plans to give employees time off for the holiday, and told readers not to expect a Thanksgiving Day edition. As a former employee of the Great Southern Printing and Manufacturing Company, I can vouch for the support of employees in family endeavors, part of the corporate culture for the entirety of this company.

​In that last edition (before the holiday) of November 29th, the paper included the following brief story of charity, and dare I say, benevolent assistance and giving to be thankful for.

​I would love to know the name of the individual who donated 100 turkeys to the lesser-fortunate families of town. I searched, but did not have an outstanding candidate, however I would bet that we have a street or building in town today likely named for him.

​What a great tale of charity, the essence of Thanksgiving. However, a few days earlier, I found a disappointing story of “Thanks-taking!” It involved the seemingly likeable turnpike tollgate operator John Nicholas Blum (which is spelled Nicolas on his gravestone) who resided at the time east of town on the National Pike (MD 144) on the western approach to the Jug Bridge that once spanned the Monocacy River.

​This foul, or fowl, travesty was certainly not an exhibition of proper holiday decorum to say the least. The German immigrant and his family had not only lost their valuable poultry, but also the main course for Thanksgiving dinner.

I did get a good chuckle out of the way the article was written, but I’m sure it was not a laughing matter for Mr. Blum, who I would soon learn is buried here in Mount Olivet. So, I decided to explore his life further. Johann Nicholas Blum was born in Hanover, Germany in 1845. He can first be found living in Frederick in the 1870 US Census.

​Here, at 25 years of age, Blum listed his occupation as that of a tailor, and was residing on the south side of West Patrick Street near its intersection with Jefferson Street. Here, he lived with wife Elizabeth (better known as “Elise”), in a house owned by Samuel Hafer, a carpenter who would later be very prominent in the annals of local cannery operations in town. Mrs. Blum was the former Elizabeth C. Biene, and hailed from Hesse Cassel (Germany). However, in this census, her next door neighbors appear to be Biene relatives (perhaps her sister and mother).

​I deduct that these individuals had recently come to America. Perhaps John Nicholas Blum was the immigrant I found landing in Baltimore on February 16th, 1867 aboard a ship named Adolphine? The age, name and profession match perfectly, and the port of entry geography fits as well. Salzderhelden is given as the former home of the immigrant and this village is located close to Einbeck and 40 miles directly south of Hanover.

Nicholas and Elise were members of Frederick's German Reformed Church and would go on to have three daughters and a son through the decade: Louisa (1870-1930), George (1871-1872), Augusta (1874-1932), and Bertha (1876-1939). George would die as a toddler and was buried in Mount Olivet’s Area H/Lot 385.

​Nicholas Blum did buy a lot on the north side of W. South St. in 1880 and sold it in 1884 to Annie F. Doll. He seems to have taken up residence at the toll house on the turnpike, scene of the great “Turkey Heist of ’83.” I found a few more mentions of Mr. Blum in relation to this property but soon he would be moving to a farm south of town along the Georgetown Pike.

​The property that the Blums bought was a portion of the greater estate of Araby, noted property which was  bought in 1864 by C. Keefer Thomas. This is the famous “Thomas Farm” associated with the Battle of Monocacy and currently owned by the National Park Service. Gen. Ulysses S. Grant would conduct a clandestine meeting here with Gen. Patrick Sheridan during the Civil War, shortly after the 1864 "Battle that Saved Washington"—but that is a story for another day.

​The "Thomas Farm" stayed in the Thomas family until 1910. What the Blums had bought in 1884 was 31 acres, which Mr. Thomas had originally sold to Frances Albaugh in 1864, shortly after purchasing the entire farm. This property is now the subdivision called "Araby View" that surrounds Wallace Circle on the west side of Araby Church Road. It is located southeast of the Thomas Farm, across Baker Valley Road.

​I learned little more about J. Nicolas Blum as he would die two years after purchasing the farm on February 14th, 1886.

​John Nicholas Blum would be laid to rest next to his son George. I also realized that he only celebrated two more Thanksgivings after the event that triggered my interest in him.

Elise Blum inherited the Araby property from her deceased husband, but in 1899 sold it to her daughter Louisa, a teacher who graduated from Towson Normal School that year. She kept this until 1904. Elise moved back in town to Frederick at this time after buying what is today’s 266 Dill Avenue in the year 1908.  Here she lived with her daughter Bertha until her own death in 1921. In 1920, Louisa and Bertha Blum, along with a man named George Caulk, bought what is now 6714 Jefferson Boulevard in Braddock Heights.

​Louisa never married and died in 1930. Two years later, middle daughter Augusta (Blum) Carter, died as well on November 11th. She had been residing in Grove City, Pennsylvania. Her body would be brought back to the family plot for burial in Frederick as her funeral took place the week before Thanksgiving. I’m assuming that it was a particularly hard holiday for Bertha to experience without her sisters as she was the last surviving member of the family, losing Louisa and Augusta in that short span.

​Sadly, Bertha would die six days after Thanksgiving on November 29th. She has no headstone, likely due to her being the last survivor of the immediate family with no one to make plans for her headstone

​Let's end with that simple message from A Charlie Brown Thanksgiving in that we shouldn't focus on what we are eating, but instead,  be most thankful for those who we are spending the holiday with along with fond memories of the opportunities had in past years with those no longer with us.  (You can thank me later turkeys).

Happy Thanksgiving to you all, and a huge thanks for the continued support of this blog along with the ongoing preservation and history efforts associated with our great cemetery.

Please remember the Mount Olivet Preservation and Enhancement Fund and Wreaths Across America  on "Giving Tuesday." Click the button below for more information.

​Accidents will happen, is an age-old saying usually uttered in an attempt to comfort someone after a mishap or setback has occurred. There was a motion picture starring Ronald Reagan that utilized this idiom as its title, and many of us, of a certain age, may recall the popular song by Elvis Costello and the Attractions from 1979.

​Inevitable parts of life, most accidents are somewhat harmless in the bigger picture with a common case in point—the spilling of milk. Other accidents, such as the typical vehicular “fender bender” are certainly a bit more serious in nature, and usually cost participants  money and inconvenience. However, there are more serious accidents which are devastating, and, dare I say, even deadly. I’m going to share three of the latter variety with you in this particular “Story in Stone,” but there are many more that can be talked about in context with our fair cemetery.
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I was inspired to pursue this theme the other day when looking at a newspaper from November 16th, 1922. The newspaper included a front-page story involving a freak gun accident which turned fatal for a local farmer. This added to the tales of two other incidents (from later in that same decade) that have been ruminating in my head in recent weeks since talking about them on recent candlelight tours I gave.
(WARNING: I must add that the following stories with accompanying newspaper accounts will be quite unsettling, so please be forewarned as this is a heart-wrenching edition. )

​Charles Keefer Summers
Even in Fall, one will find plenty of “Summers” here in Mount Olivet. We have two such individuals with this surname on our cemetery’s Board of Directors as well. The Summers in question here is a gentleman named Charles Keefer Summers, born in 1882. It appears that Mr. Summers was born and grew up in Yellow Springs area northwest of Frederick City. He was one of 10 children.

​His father, Jacob Ezra Summers, bought a 62-acre farm in 1886, the current location being 6201 Ford Road, home to a dog kennel business. The Summers family would later own property along Yellow Springs Road, adjacent my old elementary school (today 8701A, 8701B and 8701C Yellow Springs Road). Charles Keefer acquired 8701C from his father in 1916. He built a sawmill on the property, a very useful thing to have since he owned a 16-acre woodlot in the vicinity of Spout Spring Road about two miles south.

​Its not known how long Charles Keefer Summers lived here, as he would acquire a few different properties during his life. He bought a farm near a place called White Oak Springs in 1909 shortly after the birth of his daughter Ethel Mary. He had married Minnie Mae McGrew of Walkersville in 1905. He would go on to have two more children, Dorothy Mae Summers (1912-2000) and Charles Hammond Summers (1915-2007)

​The Charles K. Summers residence was on the west side of New Design Road, south of Ballenger Creek and along White Oak Springs Road (which no longer exists but once ran along the south side of Ballenger Creek between New Design Road and Buckeystown Pike.) This property is now the Robin Meadows development. More recently known as the Griffin Farm, the nearby White Oak Springs to the northwest of the Summers property constitutes land within a housing community called the Enclave at Ballenger Run, located a few hundred yards east of Tuscarora High School.

​Charles also bought what is now 407 and 409 Wilson Place in 1917. This was part of a new suburban development named Villa Estates. He would never live here, selling to a William Warfield in 1920, at which time the existing house was constructed. This may explain Charles’ occupation as listed as “contractor” in the 1920 US Census. These lots in Villa Estates were advertised as “little farms” and attractive opportunities to live in the city, while having the opportunity to grow your own garden and raise chickens.

​“Keefer,” as he was more commonly known, would meet his early demise at his home near White Oak Springs. I’d like to remind you that this was purely by accident. The ill-fated day was that of November 15th, 1922.  Here is the story that appeared in the Frederick News on November 16th.

​Charles Keefer Summers body was laid to rest in Mount Olivet’s Area MM/Lot 81, not far from the grave of Gov. Thomas Johnson, Jr. Wife Minnie would remarry two more times. She appears to have rented the property near White Oak Springs until 1933, at which time she sold the property. Minnie died in 1960.

​Austin Z. McDevitt
Down the hill and to the east of Charles and Minnie Summers gravesite is that of Austin Zimmerman McDevitt in Area OO/Lot 130. Here we have the victim of another accidental death, which claimed the life of a gentleman only 37 years old.

​In the annals of history, 1929 was not the greatest of years anyway. Although it started well, you may recall “the Great Crash” which had nothing to do with automobiles, but everything to do with Wall Street as this was the legendary stock market crash that occurred in the autumn of that year. It started in September and ended late in October, when share prices on the New York Stock Exchange collapsed and sparked the following decade and an era coined “The Great Depression.”
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Austin Zimmerman McDevitt was born October 15th, 1892. He was the son of John Edward McDevitt (1851-1919) and wife, Rebecca Jane Zimmerman (1852-1901). The family lived in Charlesville, directly north of Frederick, near Lewistown. Austin was the fourth of four children.

​Sadly, Austin would experience great loss in his life. His mother passed when he was 9 years old. He married Eleanor May Riggs in 1916, and the couple had a daughter, Lulu May in 1918. In the next two years, our subject would lose both his infant daughter and young wife. Lulu passed at eight months of age of pneumonia and Eleanor died in the State sanitarium at Sabillasville of tuberculosis at the age of 24.  

​Austin would marry again in late 1920, this time to Naomi V. Baugher. The couple would have five children and resided at 246 West 5th Street in Frederick City.

​Mr. McDevitt worked for the Walker Hill Dairy located on B&O Avenue in the southeast part of Frederick. This operation was begun by William A. Simpson (1864-1948), who had  bought properties at G Street in southeast Washington, D.C. around 1900, and expanded the stables from his Walker Hill Dairy, which delivered Frederick County, Maryland, milk to area doorsteps until 1929. I presume that the Frederick division hailed from the White Cross Milk operation.

​Austin Z. McDevitt would be buried on December 23rd in the same plot he had buried his wife and daughter years before.

On Christmas Eve, 1929, Naomi McDevitt found herself a grieving widow with five children.  A terrible accident had changed the upward trajectory of a young family. While conducting research on the McDevitts, I also learned that Christmas Eve, 1929 marked misfortune for the White House down the road in Washington, DC. A children’s Christmas party held by President Herbert Hoover and attended by aides and friends was suddenly disrupted by a fire that would rage in the presidential residence’s West Wing executive offices. Despite the four-alarmer bringing some 130 firefighters to the White House, the children were never aware. The press room was destroyed, and the offices suffered substantial damage. However, the fire was out by 10:30 p.m.

I’ve included a clipping from the Frederick Post from December 26th, 1929, along with a link to a short video produced by the White House Historical Association.

https://www.whitehousehistory.org/videos/1929-christmas-eve-fire-at-the-white-house

​While the White House would make a full recovery over coming months into 1930, things would get progressively worse for the family of Austin Z. McDevitt. Naomi McDevitt would die suddenly of a heart attack in 1931.

​The orphaned children had lost both parents in tragic manner. I am assuming they would be raised by relatives, and learned that at least one, John William McDevitt would attend the Buckingham School for Boys in Buckeystown, as I would think that his brother Austin Zimmerman McDevitt, Jr. would as well.
I know of John’s fate because he is buried beside his mother and within a few yards of his father in Area OO/Lot 130. This veteran of the US Navy would sadly, like his father, lose his life due to a freak accident while in the line of duty. He was only 20 years of age.

​When I ventured to the gravesite to take pictures for this story, it gave me great pleasure to see that John W. McDevitt’s grave was marked with a flag for Veterans Day. I also took pause to think that on the 93rd anniversary of his father’s unfortunate death, and 79 years after his own, John William McDevitt will have a wreath on his grave courtesy of our annual Wreaths Across America program.

​Shields Children
The months of January, February and March of 1930 found the McDeVitt family reeling, and President Hoover utilizing a makeshift office. The latter would not move back into the West Wing until mid-April, at which time we had a local family and an entire community in shock over one of the worst accidents in Frederick's history—one in which four young children would die as a result. This event not only made front page news locally and regionally, but it was covered in publications across the country.

A fight between a married couple originating in Montgomery County led to a series of events resulting in fatal consequences. It was the mother of all accidents, and exemplified the height of just how tragic and disturbing a mishap could be. It didn't involve a weapon, as we saw earlier in the case of Charles Keefer Summers, or vehicles (truck/airplane) as witnessed in the deaths of Austin McDeVitt and son John William. No, it was a typical household appliance that is better known for aiding life with food preparation, instead of impacting, or heaven forbid, taking life away. The fateful day in this case was Thursday,  March 27th.

To summarize, Mrs. Carol LaRue Shields came to Frederick to confer with her sister after having a fight with her husband Lester at their home in Boyds (Montgomery County).  Mr. Shields was a former veteran of World War I, who served with Company K of the 29th Division in France. He worked as a farm laborer.

Mrs. Shields was a mother of four at the time, and had traveled to Frederick to see her sister (Elsie Bussard) to receive support for her most recent altercation with Lester.  Elsie not being home at the time precipitated Mrs. Shields to seek a neighbor to tell of her trouble with her husband. Thinking the children would be alright unsupervised for a short amount of time, Mrs. Shields made "the accident of her lifetime" as the children did the unthinkable.

The Shields had already lost two infants in 1920 and 1924. These were buried in a Shields family lot in Area B/Lot 70. Upon visiting, I could not find these children as "names in stone," as their graves remain unmarked. As for the Shields as a couple with severe issues, they had lost all their children in an instant. With some additional research, we found that the true address of the Bussard residence is today's 612 Trail Avenue, directly across the street from the hospital.

An excruciating story, one that certainly got more than its proper share of coverage. In mid April, census records show me that Mr. and Mrs. Shields estranged with Lester Shields living with his brother in Clarksville. They would divorce and I found that Lester would remarry (Maggie Geneva (King) Sheckels) and live in Montgomery County until his death in 1964. The couple are buried at Parklawn Memorial Park in Rockville. 

​​I could not find Carol LaRue Shields in that census of 1930. She would remarry, however, seven years later in February, 1937. Her marriage to Robert D. Dickinson would only last for just over four years as Carol died in June, 1941. She is buried in the Norris family plot at Monocacy Cemetery in Beallsville, Montgomery County.

The six children of Lester and Carol Shields are buried in Area B, all without tombstones. They are surrounded by Shields family members of earlier generations.

Accidents can be quite terrible things. They will happen yes, but they can also be avoided in some cases as well if caution and proactive thinking is considered at all times. God bless those mentioned in this unsettling story, as lives certainly did not get the chance to be lived to the fullest in all circumstances.

Veterans Day weekend and thousands of flags are gently blowing in the breeze here in Mount Olivet Cemetery. These were placed on the graves of former military personnel last Saturday November 5th by hundreds of volunteers, both young and old. The Veterans Day holiday, itself, is recognized on November 11th each year, symbolic as the date when World War I officially ended in 1918. For over a century, November 11th has been a national holiday in France, and was declared a national holiday in many Allied nations. However, many Western countries and associated nations have since changed the name of the holiday from Armistice Day, with member states of the Commonwealth of Nations adopting Remembrance Day, and the United States government opting for Veterans Day.

At the 11th hour on the 11th day of the 11th month of 1918, the Great War ended. At 5 am. that morning, Germany, lacking manpower and supplies and faced with imminent invasion, signed an armistice agreement with the Allies in a railroad car outside Compiégne, France. World War I left nine million soldiers dead and 21 million wounded, with Germany, Russia, Austria-Hungary, France and Great Britain each losing nearly a million or more lives. In addition, at least five million civilians died from disease, starvation, or exposure.
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Twelve Frederick boys, buried in Mount Olivet, died while engaged in active duty. I’ve written previous stories about each of these individuals. 600 other veterans, including four known women, joined their comrades here when their lives on earth came to fruition.

As part of the ceremony, we acknowledged 11 knockout roses which were planted on the perimeter of the gazebo as part of a Never Forget Garden. This idea “germinated” from Arlington Cemetery through an initiative started in 2018. The Tomb of the Unknown Soldier Never Forget Garden is a nationwide invitation to all Americans and freedom loving people to plant gardens as a visual way to represent America’s unwavering commitment to our sacred duty to recognize, remember, and honor our veterans, many who continued to serve as first responders, and their families now and for many years to come. There are many ways and traditions that are available to express patriotism, love, mourning and remembrance.

​The Never Forget Garden Marker, designed in collaboration with the artists at Carruth Studio, was inspired by the sacred duty of the American people to never, ever forget or forsake all those who have served and sacrificed on behalf of America in times of war or armed conflict. Its message beckons the visitor "to pause in this special place, and with a quiet soul open your heart to allow these plantings to speak; to reflect upon the deeds of those who we owe a debt that can never be fully repaid; and to think about those immutable truths that define us as Americans secured by their full measure of devotion."

Occasioned by the Centennial of the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier, a Never Forget Garden and this marker are intended to be a place to remember, to honor, and to teach. It is a place of remembrance and renewal of our commitment to the living, the dead, and those yet to serve our Country.
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We originally scheduled our dedication event for October 1st but it was postponed to month’s end due to rain, the remnants of Hurricane Ian which did a number on western Florida. On our second try, we had perfect weather, and an equally nice ceremony to go with it. The late October event featured a few highly talented speakers. One of which was Richard Azzaro, a former guard of the Tomb of the Unknown soldier from March 1963-April 1965. Mr. Azzaro is co-founder of the Society of the Honor Guard, Tomb of the Unknown Soldier and served as the organization’s inaugural Vice President and later as President. He is the current director of the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier Never Forget Garden Committee. He was joined by Chaplain Charles J. Shacochis, Jr., who also served as part of the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier honor guard from February 1965 until February 1967.

​These gentlemen explained that the recent Centennial of World War I was not only a celebration to remember the burial of the World War I Unknown Soldier, but an opportunity to reflect on what the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier means to America. The legislation that created the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier, written by Congressman Hamilton Fish, viewed the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier as a focal point to bring all Americans together—that its meaning be not limited to the Great War and the exclusive claim of that War’s veterans.
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The Tomb of the Unknown Soldier in Arlington is an American symbol of remembrance that has a connection to an organization to Le Souvenir Francais. In 1887 this organization began in northern France in an area known as Alsace-Lorraine that was claimed by Prussia after the War of 1870. To remember French soldiers who had died fighting Prussian (German) soldiers, young French girls placed flowers and tri-color cockades of the French flag on the tombstones of these departed warriors despite the orders of Prussian officials who occupied Alsace-Lorraine not to decorate the graves.

​A professor from the area, Xavier Niessen organized the Le Souvenir Francais to honor these dead soldiers. As word spread throughout France, a swell of patriotism grew. On March 7, 1887 Professor Niessen petitioned the French government to join Le Souvenir Francais and they did. Up until 1914 and the start of Great War, Le Souvenir Francais created monuments and participated in ceremonies across France honoring war dead. In 1914 the organization began affixing tricolor cockades on tombstones of France’s dead near hospitals and cemeteries.

​Following the end of World War I, Le Souvenir Francais was unable to access the graves of the dead still on French battlefields. The government was concerned about the spread of disease, unexploded ordnance and other hazards. Around the 1st of November, All Saints Day, ceremonies were organized away from the battlefields to place flowers on graves and help bereaved families. It was during one of these ceremonies that Francis Simon asked the French government to transfer the body of an Unknown French Soldier from the battlefield to Paris.
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The commanding general of American forces in France, Brigadier General William D. Connor, learned of the French project while it was still in the planning stage. Favorably impressed, he proposed a similar American project to the Army Chief of Staff, General Peyton C. March, on October 29, 1919.
Gen. March ultimately did not approve Gen. Connor's proposal. Mrs. M. M. Melony, editor of the Delineator, made a similar suggestion to Gen. March. In his reply Gen. March explained to Mrs. Melony that while the French and English had many unknown dead, it appeared possible that the Army Graves Registration Service eventually would identify all American dead. Furthermore, the United States had no burial place for a fallen hero similar to Westminster Abbey or the Arc de Triumphe. In any case, March pointed out, the matter was one for Congress to decide.

​On December 21st, 1920, Congressman Hamilton Fish, III of New York introduced a resolution calling for the return to the United States of an unknown American member of the overseas Expeditionary Force killed in combat in France and his burial with appropriate ceremonies in a tomb to be constructed at the recently built Memorial Amphitheater in Arlington National Cemetery.

The measure was approved on March 4th, 1921 as Public Resolution 67 of the 66th Congress. Fish had originally intended for the ceremony to take place on Memorial Day 1921 but it was too late for that date. Then on October 20, 1921, Congress declared November 11th, 1921 a legal holiday to honor all those who participated in World War I; an elaborate ceremony in Washington would pay tribute to the symbolic unknown soldier.
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On September 9th, 1921 the Quartermaster General received orders from the War Department to select an unknown soldier from those buried in France. Following the selection ceremony, he was to deliver the body to Le Havre, where the Navy would receive it for transportation to the United States. The necessary arrangements were completed by the Quartermaster Corps in France in cooperation with French and U.S. Navy authorities. According to plans, the selection ceremony was to take place at Chalons-sur-Marne, ninety miles east of Paris, on October 24th, 1921.

The honor of making the selection went to Sergeant Edward F. Younger, a decorated World War I veteran sent from his posting in Germany to support the selection ceremony. To indicate his choice of the Unknown Soldier, Younger placed a spray of white roses upon one of four caskets that contained the remains of unidentified American service members. These roses held deep meaning. They were donated by Brasseur Brulfer, a former member of the Châlons City Council who lost two sons in the war, including one whose remains were never identified—just like the American Unknown being honored that day. Grown in the earth of France, these roses formed a tangible connection between the American Unknown, the unknown dead of France and the French nation itself.

​After the selection ceremony, the roses were placed on top of the flag-draped casket of the newly designated Unknown Soldier. Various sources, images and motion picture footage indicate that the roses from the selection travelled with the Unknown through many stages of his journey back to the United States, and may have been buried with him inside the Tomb. In the years after 1921, the white rose came to symbolize the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier. To this day, it is frequently used in commemorations related to the Tomb, such as a recent ceremony at Sgt. Younger’s grave on October 24th, 1921, to mark the 100th anniversary of the selection.

 Mr. Azzaro wrapped up his comments by placing a bouquet of white roses on our Never Forget Garden marker. Additional remarks were given by Corey Campion, Associate Professor of History and Global Studies Program Director, Master's in Humanities and Chair, Dept. of History. Corey has conducted much research on World War I, which has culminated in him co-authoring a book with teaching colleague Trevor Dodman (also of Hood College), creating a curriculum to instruct educators and leading a tour a few years back to the former battlefields of France.

Corey spoke to the importance of remembering not only the war dead, but also the veterans of any and all military conflicts. He referenced the Victory monument in Frederick’s Memorial Park, site of the annual Veterans Day program, along with other such sites in the county such as the Doughboy Memorial in Emmitsburg, Middletown's Memorial Hall and the William Bunke Memorial in Libertytown’s St. Peter’s Catholic Cemetery. Now our Mount Olivet World War I Memorial Gazebo joins that esteemed collection.

​Moina Michael, who had taken leave from her professorship at the University of Georgia to be a volunteer worker for the American YMCA Overseas War Secretaries Organization, was inspired by the poem. She published a poem of her own called "We Shall Keep the Faith" in 1918. In tribute to McCrae's poem, she vowed to always wear a red poppy as a symbol of remembrance for those who fought in and assisted with the war. At a November 1918 YMCA Overseas War Secretaries' conference, she appeared with a silk poppy pinned to her coat and distributed twenty-five more poppies to attendees. She then campaigned to have the poppy adopted as a national symbol of remembrance.

​At the conclusion of our Mount Olivet Gazebo ceremony, we invited participants and onlookers in helping us spread red poppy seeds around the gazebo to further enhance our Never Forget Garden. We may not have poppies springing up in all other areas in our cemetery, but the flags (I referenced at the beginning) in a way represent the beautiful red flowers of Flanders Fields and battlefields everywhere our ancestors toiled. Thank you again to the volunteers who help us place these in advance of both Veterans Day and Memorial Day as its a big project. In five weeks on Wreaths Across America Day, these gravesites will also be covered with wreaths of evergreen symbolizing HONOR, RESPECT, and VICTORY.

​While on the subject of flowers, I can’t help but think of seeds and seasons. Of course, I could wax poetic for hours about the symbolism of both flowers and seasons and their relationship to life and death.  One of the greatest principles in life is the concept of sowing seeds. This teaches us that if we give something, we can receive something in return. If we plant something in the proper conditions, water, feed and grow it, we can reap something bigger and greater.

On Veterans Day, we honor all current and former members of the Armed Services. Our country's greatness is built on the foundation of your courage and sacrifice. Veterans Day calls out the sacrifices made by all service members in their decision to protect our freedoms by pledging their time, efforts, energies and expertise in addition to their lives. 

​Mr. Seed Control
With the flow of this story, it is obvious to me that at least one Mount Olivet veteran, in particular, needs to be recognized this Veterans Day weekend.  He was a Frederick native and veteran of World War I, but of greater intrigue, his nickname was “Mr. Seed Control.”

​His name was Leslie Edward Bopst, a peculiar name, to go along with an even more peculiar nickname. There are 49 people with the Bopst moniker resting here in Mount Olivet,  and I’m told the name is pronounced with a long O sounding similar to boast, but with a “p” sandwiched in the middle of that one-syllable word.
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Born January 3rd, 1894 to William Mortimer Bopst and Anna Mary (Brunner), Leslie spent his childhood at 8 East 8th Street on the outskirts of downtown Frederick in the early 20th century. His father started the Excelsior Dairy and ran the operation until 1920 at which time he sold it to Charles F. Rothenhoefer.

​Leslie had three sisters and was educated in local schools. He was a 1913 graduate of nearby Frederick Boys’ High School under the watchful eye of Professor Amon Burgee. Bopst busied himself with athletics and served as president of the Belles Lettres Literary Society. Fittingly, he also had charge of his high school’s floral committee.

​Leslie Bopst would go on to further his education at the Maryland Agricultural College, later to be known as the University of Maryland. He would graduate in 1916. While in school, Leslie, or Les as he was more commonly called, partook in athletics for the M. A. C. The Reveille yearbook of 1916 includes a picture of him as a senior, and another as a member of the college’s baseball team.

​The yearbook also makes mention of him having the rank of 1st Lt. in Company A. I believe this to be the college's Company A of an ROTC program as opposed to Frederick’s unit in the Maryland National Guard, which had its home at the former armory building standing on the southwest corner of N. Bentz and W. 2nd streets across from Memorial Park. Les would formally enlist in the US Army on September 27th, 1917. At this time, he found himself as a private in the 154th Depot Brigade. Twelve days later he was transferred to Company I of the 313th Infantry Regiment.

​Bopst would receive a promotion to the rank of corporal five weeks later. The following year, Les would be transferred on April 12th to a unique new wing of the United States Army. This was the Battalion Research Division of Chemical Warfare Service. The Great War was the first to utilize deadly and debilitating gasses thus necessitating such a division. Bopst would not be sent overseas to France, but would be based in Washington, DC. He would attain the rank of corporal for this entity one week before the end of the war, and would be honorably discharged one month later on December 10th, 1918.
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After completing his military service, Les embarked on a five-year career with the Department of Agriculture in seed chemistry. I found Les Bopst in the 1920 census living in an apartment building located on P Street in the nations capital. In this record, his occupation was listed as chemist, and his place of employment was labeled “private concern.” By 1922, his workplace would be the Maryland Agricultural College at today’s College Park. He joined the staff of inspection service at his alma mater as a chemist in charge of seeds with fertilizer and lime to fall under his purview shortly thereafter.

​On September 19th, 1923, our subject was a resident of Bethesda (MD) and married a fellow Bethesdan by the name of Myrtle R. Rabbitt. They would raise two daughters into adulthood.

​In 1928, Les would be named associate state chemist after spending a number of years as assistant state chemist. 

Bopst spent his remaining years as a corporate consultant, and remained active with Rotary and the College Park Club of which he was a charter member. He and Myrtle lived in the College Park-Hyattsville area and doted on the seeds of their personal life, two daughters and five grandchildren.

​Leslie E. Bopst died on December 20th, 1968. He would be buried in Area L/Lot 160, located behind our Key Memorial Chapel, along the drive that leads west to Confederate Row. Wife Myrtle would join him here in late May of 1990.

​There is a fine, large monument in Mount Olivet’s Area D whose owner can certainly be considered an eyewitness to history. As a matter of fact, he and his family had, what you would call, “a front row seat” (or at worst, balcony seats) to a major moment in Frederick, Maryland’s magnificent history. His name was Jacob Leilich, and his resting spot is along the east side of the cemetery’s central driveway where he is buried with his wife Chatarina. 

​The Leilichs were not alone in their memorable observance on the late afternoon of Saturday, October 4th, 1862. Several members of the town’s citizenry were also on hand for an impromptu speech given at the old Baltimore & Ohio Railroad’s passenger station at the corner of East All Saints and South Market streets. The oratory was made by our legendary 16th President of the United States—Abraham Lincoln.
One of the most interesting aspects of this experience for Mr. Leilich (and his family) comes in the fact that he never had to leave his home—the oratory came from the back of a train car that was parked right outside his window. The Leilichs lived in the building directly across East All Saints Street from the train station, today the home of Downtown Piano Works (74 South Market Street).

​The former train station is better known as the Frederick Community Action Agency, home of the Frederick City Food Bank. The Leilichs operated a hotel and grocery store as part of their spacious home which stretched down East All Saints Street. I know from researching/writing other stories that the neighboring house to the north on South Market was home to Jacob Haller’s Tavern, a popular oyster saloon for many years, conveniently located across from the United Fire Company (which still operates to this day.)

First off, I’d like to talk about President Lincoln’s speech and what brought him to Frederick in early October of 1862. We will conclude with a look at Jacob Leilich and his family.

President Lincoln

​Exactly one month earlier, Frederick County found itself at the hands of what many townspeople thought were invaders. Others, however, saw these men as liberators. Either way, the soldiers of Gen. Robert E. Lee’s Army of Northern Virginia had crossed the Potomac into Maryland after a successful late August victory in the Second Battle of Manassas, also known as the Second Battle of Bull Run. Frederick would be the first, major northern (or Union) town that Lee would bring his Confederate Army.

Those students of Civil War history (among you) know that the occupation of Frederick lasted almost a week until Lee made a move west. The Union Army of the Potomac, under Gen. George B. McClellan, headed north toward Frederick out of Washington, DC in pursuit of the Rebels. After the supposed flag-waving episode of Barbara Fritchie (September 10th, 1862), the Confederate Army continued west on the old National Pike, making use of today’s Alternate US 40 over Braddock Mountain, through Middletown and across South Mountain. Here the armies would engage one another on September 14th in the Battle of South Mountain.

​From Sharpsburg, President Lincoln would travel to Frederick City where he received an enthusiastic welcome complete with “signal guns and a parade.” Arriving around 5:00pm, Lincoln visited Brig. Gen. George L. Hartsuff of Michigan, who was injured in the morning phase of the battle at Antietam. Hartsuff was recuperating in the home of Mrs. Eleanor Tyler Ramsey, a short distance from the town’s courthouse square. After visiting the general, Lincoln gave a brief impromptu speech to a group assembled outside the Ramsey House, then made his way to Frederick’s B&O train station for the return trip to Washington. When he arrived at the station, the president found himself surrounded by a large crowd of citizens, soldiers and free blacks.
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We are very lucky to have a depiction of this event from the exact period. It was sketched by Mr. Hamilton, a Civil War sketch artist for the newspapers of the day. The lithograph appeared in the October 25th, 1862 edition of Harper’s Weekly newspaper.

​The newspaper also provided the following text to describe the image, along with a transcript of the president’s speech:

THE PRESIDENT'S VISIT TO McCLELLAN'S ARMY.
We publish on page 684 an illustration of the President's visit to Frederick. His journey through Maryland was one continuous and triumphant ovation, and will have the effect not only of teaching the rebels how little they gained by their last raid upon the affections of "My Maryland," but of convincing Northern traitors that henceforth we may count her as irrevocably fixed to the Union.
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A vast concourse of people had assembled at the railway station at Frederick; and the President had no sooner got away from those who rushed to shake hands with him, and reached the train, than loud cries brought him to the platform of the rear carriage, to show himself and speak to his friends. This is the moment seized upon and illustrated by our artist. The President, in a clear voice, and with that honest, good-natured manner for which he is so noted, spoke as follows:

​I have a framed, original copy of this lithograph from an old Harper’s Weekly edition. Mine is even hand-colored and I have hanging in my office. The Lincoln speech event of 1862 is especially near and dear to my heart because I helped organize a re-enactment of it back on October 4th, 2012. This was the 150th anniversary of Lincoln’s legendary visit to Frederick. Our Lincoln portrayer that day was James Hayney of Camp Hill, PA.

​The day culminated with the official unveiling of the Downtown Frederick Heritage Trail Marker System. One marker commemorates Lincoln's 1862 visit and was placed in front of the Leilich former home. As an aside, before our downtown event at the old train station, Mr. Hayney (as Lincoln) entertained schoolchildren at Lincoln Elementary School a few blocks to the south. Interestingly, the Leilich gravesite affords a view of this school.

​One day, I looked at the lithograph very closely, scouring the individuals depicted in Lincoln’s audience. My eye wandered over to the building sketched on the far left and saw that the artist had included a sign over the door fronting on South Market Street. It reads: Groceries J. Leslich. It should read Leilich, but it was either misspelled by accident, or by design. From there I did my research, and here we are a few years later.

​One more thing, I will kindly draw your attention to in respect to this particular art piece, is the presence of individuals by the Leilich’s front door and, moreso, people visible in the upstairs window. Were any of these folks Jacob, Chatarina or, more likely, the Leilich children? We may never know, but I guarantee that you will never look at this particular lithograph quite the same when you see it again!

​Jacob Leilich
First off, you may be interested to know that the name Leilich is German in origin, and constitutes the 1,052,587th most common surname in the world at the time of our publishing. I couldn’t find a meaning for the name. The Leilich monument in Area D is pretty impressive and among the largest of the section. It is also educational, including brief biographies on both Jacob, and wife Chatarina (Blumenauer) Leilich.

​“To the memory of Jacob Leilich Born October 5th, 1809 Departed this life July 16, 1870. Aged 60 years 9 mos. & 9 days. The deceased was born in Schaafheim, Kris Bezirk Dieburg Broszherzogthum Hessen Darmstadt Germany and came to this Country Aug. 18, 1831."

​"To the memory of Chatarina Leilich Wife of Jacob Leilich Departed this life May 15, 1866 Aged 53 years 10 mos. & 20 days. The deceased was born in Wolfersheim Koenigsreich Bayern, Rhein Kreis Zweybruecken Germany and with her parents came to this country in 1837. Rest in peace, Mother."

​I’m not certain as to the exact year Jacob Leilich came to Frederick, but it was between 1831-1834 because he married Chatarina here on April 19th, 1834. From 1835-1859, Leilich owned the property on the west side of South Market Street that is now 75-77 South Market. He had a blacksmith shop there. Leilich bought the 72-76 South Market property in 1845 from Capt. Henry Jefferson Walling, a popular passenger train conductor for the Baltimore & Ohio Railroad. You may recall the surname as Henry’s son, “Uncle Joe” Walling was a subject of an earlier “Story in Stone.” Let’s just say that unlike his father who preferred train travel, Joe preferred walking.

​Jacob Leilich was bonded to the Levy Court as the "Standard Keeper of Weights and Measures" for the county in 1851. In addition to being a businessman, I found newspaper articles showing his connections to civic activities. He was an active parishioner of Evangelical Lutheran Church and a member of the United Fire Company. Perhaps he could have been with the Uniteds (militia) unit in October 1859 when they were among the first responders to Harpers Ferry for John Brown’s ill-fated insurrection attempt? I saw mention that Jacob also catered big events for his fire company, among others.

​(NOTE: The sentences in German translate roughly to "our German friend from over the Rhine. He likes sauerkraut but not lager beer and pretzels.")
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As with the hotel-based taverns of the day, these places were often locations of public auctions as they had the accommodations to hold larger public gatherings. Hoteliers, like Jacob Leilich, frequently appeared as trustees for many of these.

​The most detailed article I uncovered regarding Mr. Leilich chronicled a terrible accident involving train travel and a daring escape in which injuries were sustained. This occurred in August, 1858.

​The Civil War came to Frederick in so many ways, and it also came to the Leilich’s home—literally and figuratively. Jacob made a recovery at home, but he wasn’t the only one who convalesced at the one-time hotel located on the northeast corner of South Market and East All Saints streets. A unique news article comes from July 1861 when a Union soldier from Easton, Pennsylvania attempted to recover from an illness at the Leilich hotel.

​I’m assuming that Jacob was a Union supporter, which I’m sure would have been comforting to Private  Lerch. Apparently, the hotel had a reputation as a hangout for Union officers and soldiers. This fact could have also led to the location being chosen as the headquarters for the Grand National Guard, Major Gen. Hancock’s First Grand Army Corps of Veterans.

​As proxies of history for us living today, I wonder how the Leilich family took the news of President Lincoln’s assassination in April, 1865? A candlelight procession of respect was conducted by Mayor (and famed diarist) Jacob Engelbrecht. I’m sure the Leilichs participated.

​Two significant things happened to Mr. Leilich after the war. His wife of 32 years passed in 1866. A year later, he was offering "stud services" via his horse "Landay." Here is newspaper proof to both of these things.

​Jacob Leilich continued the hotel as can be witnessed by a newspaper advertisement placed in the local newspaper by a sewing machine salesman who had taken temporary residence in 1867. He also continued his work on behalf of local politics.

​The 1870 US Census shows “Leilich’s Hotel” still serving home to now widower Jacob Leilich, and four out of five of his children and extended family. In addition, there are three other boarders listed. Three of the Leilich girls would marry. Two of which Anna M. (Leilich) Dayhoff (1836-1888) and Maria L. (Leilich) Burke (1841-1880) are buried here in this plot, along with unmarried Catharine “Kitty” Elizabeth Leilich (1837-1920). The remaining sister, Louisa L. (Leilich) Rollins (1843-?) married a Union soldier from Wisconsin during the Civil War and eventually moved west to Iowa. The Leilichs’ only son, John Jacob, is also buried here (1849-1873) and his name adorns the southside of the large monument.

​Jacob Lielich died on July 16th, 1870. His robust obituary appeared in the Maryland Union newspaper a day later. He would be laid to rest in the family plot next to his wife.

​​As for the old “Leilich Hotel,” it was sold to Robert Lease in 1874. The property had been advertised for public sale several times following Leilich's death, but one of the executors died and authorization for the other executor was revoked so a new executor had to be appointed by the Orphans Court, hence the delay.

​Looking at the bigger picture, Frederick County and City remain an incredible case study in Black history. Along with an audience which included freeman and slaves, Jacob Leilich watched as Abraham Lincoln, known later as “The Great Emancipator,” gave a brief speech on East All Saints Street on October 4th, 1862. This neighborhood would become the hub of Frederick’s Black community in the decades and century to come.

​History is simply amazing when you really think of all the intricate connections between events, places and people. Best of all, Frederick and her citizens are part of so many chapters of our great country’s story. As can be found each and every week through this blog, we can learn so much from examination of the lives in those residing in not only our cemetery, but any burial ground. 

​“Art Thou Weary, Art Thou Languid?” This hymn, written for quartet, rang out in the early afternoon 110 years ago on this very day (October 3rd, 1912). The occasion, a funeral of course, featured hundreds of people in the form of friends, family members, neighbors, education colleagues and former students. They had come to Mount Olivet to pay their last respects in the cemetery’s Area P at the southeastern base of what we call Cemetery Hill. The decedent was a man who did a great deal for his community, state, nation and fellow man. I’m not trying to be facetious here, but I can say with conviction that this man’s greatest achievements fell on deaf ears—and he wouldn’t have had it any other way.
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Charles Wright Ely was not a native of Frederick or Maryland, as he hailed from the northeast. Ely came to Frederick in 1870 after accepting an administration position for a newly formed educational facility established here just two years earlier in 1868 in the form of the Maryland School for the Deaf.

​Interestingly, Professor Ely’s old school is located half the distance to Mount Olivet’s front gate as his gravesite is to the same gate near the statue of Francis Scott Key. This Ely family plot is adorned with a central monument for Charles and wife Mary, with the graves of four of his five children on both sides.

​I opened up this blog with the mention of a particular religious hymn from Professor Ely’s Funeral, as it is also mentioned in his obituary. The hymn’s lyrics were written by an English minister named John Mason Neale in 1882, and based on  music composed 12 years earlier by Henry W. Baker in 1868. Coincidentally, that was the year of Maryland School for the Deaf’s founding.

The hymn "Art thou weary? Art thou languid? " is a translation from the Greek of St. Stephen the Sabaite, who was a monk who lived near Bethlehem, overlooking the Dead Sea. Born in 725 AD, this poor fellow was placed in a solitary monastery at the age of ten by his uncle, and left there for fifty years. He died in 796. I found it interesting that he, like Professor Ely, spent a large part of his life amidst a backdrop of silence. Regardless, here is a rendition of the beautiful hymn that Neale wrote:

​Maryland School for the Deaf is located on South Market Street. At one time, this was considered far south of Frederick Town. The Frederick “Hessian” Barracks had served home to a Revolutionary War prison facility, a drilling camp for militia soldiers of the War of 1812, a cocoonery for making silk, and was the first permanent home of the Frederick Agricultural Society’s annual exposition and fair.

This event came to an abrupt halt during the American Civil War, as the barracks property was transformed into a major military hospital center labeled Union Hospital #1. Here, soldiers of both armies received care from a talented group of physicians, nurses and benevolent townspeople doing their part to help. At war’s end, the Agricultural Society found a new home for their “fair” and the locale was destined to serve home for an educational use.

Within a few years, this would become home to the Maryland Deaf and Dumb Asylum, specifically chartered by the State to care for children in need of special instruction means to assist with the challenges that deafness brings.

​The mission of today’s MSD is to provide ASL (American Sign language) and English language models for early language acquisition, and to provide linguistically-enriched ASL and English environments for the attainment of fluency in both languages. This mission is accomplished when all MSD students become fluent in both ASL and written English upon graduation.

​In my research, I wanted to check on the origins of American Sign Language and here I found another irony involving Professor Ely, and in particular, his home state of Connecticut. ASL is thought to have originated in the American School for the Deaf (ASD), founded in Hartford, Connecticut, in 1817.  Originally known as The American Asylum, At Hartford, For The Education And Instruction Of The Deaf And Dumb, the school was founded by the Yale graduate and divinity student Thomas Hopkins Gallaudet.

Inspired by his success in demonstrating the learning abilities of a young deaf girl Alice Cogswell, Gallaudet traveled to Europe in order to learn deaf pedagogy from European institutions. Ultimately, Gallaudet chose to adopt the methods of the French Institut National de Jeunes Sourds de Paris, and convinced Laurent Clerc, an assistant to the school's founder Charles-Michel de l'Épée, to accompany him back to the United States. Upon his return, Gallaudet founded the ASD on April 15th, 1817.

​Thomas H. Gallaudet’s legacy is honored by the naming of the famed educational institution bearing his name in Washington, DC—Gallaudet University. Originally known as the Columbia Institution for the Instruction of the Deaf and Dumb and Blind (from 1864-1894), T. H. Gallaudet’s son Edward Miner Gallaudet served as its first president from 1864-1910.  This gentleman and our subject, both Connecticuters, were intimate colleagues as well as friends.

​The Ely family name can be found here on this campus as well as on our own MSD campus in downtown Frederick.  Charles Wright Ely gave assistance to Gallaudet from his seat to the north in Frederick, but one of his sons would have a lasting impact. Charles Russell Ely would serve as a teacher here from 1892-1912 and from 1913-1939, the year of his death. Charles Russell only left the school for a brief period immediately following his father's death, during which he served as MSD's principal from 1912-1913. Later, he served as vice-president of Galluadet from 1920-1939). The old student center building at Gallaudet was named for Charles Russell Ely.

​Back to our subject, Charles Wright Ely, he died in 1912 while visiting his son at Gallaudet. It came as quite a surprise because as he was only 73 and in relatively good health in both mind and body.

To give a backstory on this interesting man, I share here the biography of Professor Ely found in T.J.C. Williams’ History of Frederick County, published in 1910, two years before his death.

“Charles Wright Ely, for nearly forty years the efficient and able superintendent of the Maryland School for the Deaf and Dumb, at Frederick, Md., was born in Madison, Conn., in 1839. He is a son of Elias Sanford and Hester (Wright) Ely.

The Ely family is one of the oldest of the New England families, the American ancestor settling in Connecticut in 1660. Elias S. Ely, the father of Charles W. Ely, was a native of Madison, Conn., where he was born in 1809, and died in 1888. By occupation, he was a farmer. He was one of the leading and most prominent citizens of his neighborhood, and there was scarcely a local office that he did not fill at one time or another. In politics he was an ardent supporter of the old line Whig party, and served for one term in the State Legislature. He was a man of sterling worth and strict integrity. In religion he was a consistent member of the Congregational Church. Elias S. Ely was married to Hester Wright, a daughter of Jedediah Wright, who in early life was a sea captain. The Wrights, also an old Connecticut family, located there in 1660-’70. Mrs. Wright lived to the age of three score and nine. Elias S. and Hester (Wright) Ely had eight children, three of whom are living: 1, Elias H., merchant of Columbus, Ohio; 2, Cornelia M., wife of the Rev. W. T. Sutherland, of Oxford, N.Y.; 3, Charles W.

​At the expiration of his term of nine months, he was mustered out, and, in 1863, went to Columbus, Ohio, where he engaged in teaching in the State Institute for the Deaf and Dumb. In 1870, Mr. Ely was induced to come to Frederick in order that he might take charge of the Institute for the Deaf and Dumb.

​Not "weary and languid," but rather "polite and able" (according to another article), I found countless articles regarding Professor Ely and his professional accomplishments and work around the country as a leader in the field of deaf education.

​The basis of many lectures as a case study in early deaf educational models, Ely took time in the early 1880s to pen MSD’s early history.

​I was fascinated to see an article in which Ely served as an umpire for an MSD football game in the year1894.  His name often made the papers for his church and community work, and I learned that he regularly spent summers in his native Connecticut with family.

​Professor Ely continued his mission to serve students and the Deaf educational community at large up through his last moments. His final activity was a work engagement in Baltimore, followed by an impromptu stop on the way back home to Frederick at Washington, DC to see his son Charles. Sadly, his wife would not get the chance to say goodbye as his demise came quick with Mary and a daughter in transit, getting to his bedside too late.

​Charles Wright Ely was finally silenced, as he said a great deal in life through his professional and personal deeds and integrity. Ely's obituary, and reports of his funeral, appeared in multiple newspapers as his reputation was held in high esteem on a national scale.

​Monument inscription: "Born in Madison, Connecticut. Graduate of Yale. Soldier in the Union Army and for forty-three years honored and beloved principal of the Maryland School for the Deaf."
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Charles W. Ely was not the first to be buried on this grave plot. An infant son, Robert, was buried here upon his death in 1873. Wife Mary Ely would die in 1926, and children Grace, Mabel and Richard would follow in future decades. As an aside, daughter Grace Darling Ely (1871-1960) also served as a teacher at MSD.

I will leave you with a contemporary arrangement of our opening hymn which has been Anglicized to “Are You Weary, Are You Languid? by a musician named Nathan C. George. I can’t get the song out of my head, and the thought of it makes me thankful for the art of music, and the ability to hear its peaceful melodies and harmonies in all forms. Of course, Deaf individuals can, and do, enjoy music too contrary to some beliefs. It's just that they experience it in a different way than hearing people.

​Regardless, it can still be enjoyed, as I'm sure it was by the students who attended Professor Ely's funeral back in October of 1912. While researching, I learned that the legendary guitarist and music artist Prince performed a surprise, free concert for Gallaudet students back in 1984 at the pinnacle of his success with the "Purple Rain" Tour.

​Prince was a legendary pioneer in music, and Professor Charles W. Ely was a pioneer in deaf education. Wow, who saw that comparison coming? Ely worked diligently to make the lives of students as full and ready as possible so they could get the most out of the lives they had waiting in front of them. That's why I like that the word "uplift" was used to describe his contributions on the 1931 plaque found on MSD's Ely Academic Building.

Professor Ely's legacy lives as the school he helped build continues "uplifting" lives today, 110 years after his sudden passing.

​In talking with colleagues and other members of our Friends group, we found it best to frame this new “Hall of Fame” on the monuments, themselves, and not specifically on the person (s) buried beneath.  So, it is the above-ground masterpiece of art and craftmanship that provides the criteria for consideration, nomination and election to our “Mount Olivet Monument Hall of Fame.” 

Unlike other "Halls of Fame" (ie: sports, music, etc.), we didn't have to build a gallery on our grounds, as we already have one! The memorials are already in place, some for well over a century and a half already. All inductees appear in the form of a virtual gallery on the MountOlivetHistory.com site.
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Last year, the inaugural class of recipients was formulated by yours truly with help from Mount Olivet Superintendent J. Ronald Pearcey. We announced the esteemed monument choices by way of a walking tour, as part of our first annual Friends of Mount Olivet picnic held last year. This year, we put the task to our Friends of Mount Olivet. A nominating committee within the Friends group was formed in early summer and headed up by Mike and Sheila Schaden. Nominees (put forth by Friends members) were submitted throughout the summer and a narrowed down list of 20 was officially introduced at this year's picnic. The voting commenced with both in-person, online and mail-in ballot from our FOMO membership. Mike and Sheila handled the entire process, and I can attest to the fact that there was no question of voter fraud  ranging from stuffing ballot boxes and "dangling chads" to  faulty machines or lack of voter ID. 
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So, with no further ado, I present to you, the reader, our inaugural class of 2022 for the Mount Olivet Monument Hall of Fame.

​Nellie Burrier and her Flowery Gravestone
​Location: Area OO/Lot 61
Date of Placement: June, 1909
​Decedents: Nellie Burrier

Just look at the level of detail utilized in carving this beautiful flower. The principal floral design chosen for this grave is in the form of an Easter lily. Lilies symbolize  innocence of the soul and resurrection.

A few years ago, assistant cemetery superintendent Rick Reeder pointed out to me this beautiful grave monument belonging to one, Nellie Burrier. This can be found on Area OO/Lot 61, with a backdrop of Harry Grove Stadium. Miss Burrier was born on May 9th, 1886, the daughter of Charles D. Burrier (1841-1892) and wife Catherine Hoke Burrier (1846-1935). Catherine Hoke Burrier was the daughter of Samuel Hoke, who possessed a sizeable series of farmsteads in the vicinity of Ceresville, with a home dwelling across from the famed Ceresville Mill. Nellie was the youngest of eight siblings and raised on her family’s farm located in Mount Pleasant, just east of Ceresville and northeast of Frederick City. Nellie’s father passed away when she was five.

I couldn’t find much about Nellie outside her attendance at local schools and partaking in friends’ social gatherings. An article exists that says she enjoyed a party in early spring 1909. Unfortunately, weeks later she would wind up in Frederick’s fledgling City Hospital in May, suffering from appendicitis.

​By the end of the month, a newspaper mentioned said that she was doing much better. However, Nellie Burrier took a turn for the worse and died from complications of appendicitis on June 5th, 1909. She was laid to rest here in the cemetery, and her family placed a beautiful marble monument atop her grave. 

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​John Engelbrecht also enjoyed gardening and song, as he was a musician who participated in two local bands of note: the Harmony Band and the Jubalean Band. He married Margaret McMullin (1798-1880) and had at least two known children (Theodore Frederick (1821-1867) and John Conrad (1819-1906).

Jacob Engelbrecht wrote the following in his diary upon John's death:

"Died this day at 5 Minutes before 2 o' clock PM my Brother John Engelbrecht he was born in this town "June 1st 1790." Consequently his age was 56 years 7 month and 12 days. Complaint dropsy. His son John C. is here now, but his son Theodore F. is in New York City."
-Thursday January 12, 1847 3 o'clock PM

Unlike the simplicity exhibited in the humble grave markings of his "well-known" brother (Jacob), parents and other siblings, John Engelbrecht's grave is quite expressive in size and scope. He was originally buried in Frederick's Lutheran graveyard between East Church and East Second streets, and behind the church edifice. Mount Olivet opened in 1854, seven years after his death. Our records show that his body was removed here a year later in 1855. I assume the monument came at that time, as the Lutheran graveyard could not accommodate a monument of this size, not to mention an iconic Victorian style and design that was more suited for the new cemeteries of the period, rather than a church graveyard. 

Hett/Reifsnider Monument
Location: Area LL/Lot 150
Date of Placement: after 1937
Decedents: Clarence H. Hett, Naomi A. (Reifsnider) Hett, Nelson H. Reifsnider, Nena (Knott) Reifsnider, Samuel D. Reifsnider, Sarah A. (Hollinger) Reifsnider, Robert R. Reifsnider, Clytie A. (Baker) Reifsnider, Naomi L. (Hett) Passmore

So I'm no architecture student and am humbly open to correction from readers. I would classify the Art Deco style utilized for this standout monument in Mount Olivet's Area LL/Lot 150. The characteristics of Art Deco reflect admiration for the modernity of the machine and for the design qualities of machine-made objects involving relative simplicity, planarity, symmetry, and unvaried repetition of elements.

Regardless, this piece of granite marks the resting place of Samuel David Reifsnider (1855-1921), his wife Sarah Alberta (Hollinger) Reifsnider (1854-1926) and three of their children and family members: Nelson Hollinger Reifsnider (1880-1958) and wife Nena Caroline (Knott) Reifsnider (1880-1947), Naomi Alberta (Reifsnider) Hett (1882-1957) and husband Clarence Henry Hett (1879-1937), their daughter Naomi Lucile (Hett) Passmore (1908-1951), and Robert Raymond Reifsnider (1886-1966) and wife Clytie Almeda (Baker) Reifsnider (1890-1961). Another daughter, Edna Lucille (Reifsnider) Duvall and her husband Carl Duvall, are buried in Area GG, while two children who died as infants (Rea Halbold Reifsnider in 1888 and Samuel Miller Reifsnider in 1894) are buried in Area R.

Krantz Monument of Hope
Location: Area H/Lot 156
Date of Placement: 1901
​Decedents: Mary C. Krantz, Edward D. Krantz, Catharine E. Krantz, 

A picturesque scene can be found in Mount Olivet’s Area G. Standing high above all surrounding others is the funerary monument of Edward C. and Mary Catherine Krantz. The towering gravestone was erected in the waning years of the Victorian Era (1832-1903) and displays the high ornamentation that characterized that time period. The era was an eclectic period in the decorative arts with several styles—Gothic, Tudor, Neoclassical—vying for dominance. This was true in architecture, furniture, and, of greatest interest here, the funerary arts. In cemeteries, gravestones became taller, embellished and sentimental.
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This particular grave monument on Lot 156 features a shrouded woman with arms folded across her chest, gazing upwards toward the heavens in what appears to be prayer and contemplation. The white marble statue sits atop a polished, granite base.  Altogether, the work stands roughly 10 feet in height. 

The monument itself is a paean to Victorian design—possessing an air of triumph, symbolism and sentimentality.  Upon closer inspection, one will notice that the woman has a chain draped around her neck which extends down and across her chest to an upright anchor at her side. One of the anchor’s spades is partially concealed under the rear of her robe. Look carefully and you will see that the chain is actually depicted as being broken at the point it reaches the eye-hole atop the anchor. 

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John J. Markell and Family Monument
Location: Area D/Lot 71
Date of Placement: after 1866
​Decedents: Artist John J. Markell and parents Samuel and Amelia Markell

When seen draped and empty, an urn symbolizes death, the final partition, separating the living from the dead. The return of the body back to ashes, and dust, leading to the soul's rebirth in the next realm. This tops a monument in Mount Olivet's Area D that can simply, and fittingly, be seen as a "work of art."

This monument rests over the grave of Samuel and Amelia Markell, and their talented son John, an artist who died whilst only in his early twenties.

John Johnston Markell was born on June 17th, 1821, and likely received his education at the Frederick Academy, where his father had been appointed to teach the Introductory School in 1809. In 1827, Samuel Markell would oversee the Third Department, which I'm guessing would denote secondary education. As for artistic talent, John J. Markell was self-taught as a painter. He may have gained inspiration from miniature portraits of his parents that were painted at the time of their wedding. A depiction of Amelia Schley Markell dates to March 9th, 1815 and was done by the Swiss itinerant artist David Boudon.

John J. Markell was only 17 years old when he painted his first self-portrait in 1838 in Philadelphia. Even at an early age, he clearly knew he was an artist, and holds, in his hand, several brushes to identify himself as an artist. By 1839, at the age of 18, he was found living in Leesburg, Virginia., and advertising his services as a “Portraits and Landscape Painter.” Markell had embarked upon the life of an itinerant portrait artist, travelling to various locations and offering his unique services to the local population.
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Markell only lived to age 23 and was buried in the German Reformed burial ground (today's Memorial Park) on the corner of W. 2nd and N. Bentz streets. In 1866, John Markell and his father were reinterred to Mount Olivet's Area D. The monument here befits a talented artist as it is a masterpiece unto itself. It truly looks a hundred times better than ever these days after our FOMO Group (lovingly known as "The Stoners") gave it a solid cleaning last summer. (Check out the amazing "Before and After cleaning" photos below)

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​John Knight McDannold "Tiffany's Monument"
Location: Area F/Lot 53
Date of Placement: c. 1899
​Decedents: John Knight McDannold 

The final gift of a loving (and extremely wealthy) grandmother to a favorite grandson, this Celtic Cross is something to behold. What makes it even more special is the fact that its maker is the famed Tiffany & Co. (jewelers) of New York City.

John K. McDannold’s obituary described him as: ”a young man highly esteemed and beloved by a wide circle of friends here in Frederick. Endowed by means, and possessing a generous disposition, his deeds of kindness knew no bounds and the generous impulses of his nature often responded to appeals of those in need. With the exception of intervals after the death of his parents, he resided in Frederick. He was fond of traveling and while away from home made many close and lasting friends. He inherited an affectionate disposition and in turn was idolized by an aged grandmother whose grief is incredibly great.”

Born in Orange, New Jersey, the recipient of this magnificent monument spent much of his youth living in Manhattan (New York City). John and his sister lived with their maternal grandmother in downtown Frederick during the 1890s after losing both parents at a young age. He would join them here in the family cemetery plot in 1899 when his ill-fated journey to Cuba with a friend stalled in Savannah, Georgia. It was here that he came down with a fatal case of pneumonia. John Knight McDannold died just a few days later. It is said that his funeral was the largest attended up to that time.

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Capt. Cornelius A. Staley "White Bronze" Marker
​Location: Area P/Lot 139
Date of Placement: after 1883
​Decedents: Capt. Cornelius A. Staley and wife Mary A. C. Staley

At first glance you may, or may not notice, something quite peculiar about this monument. Unlike its lithic brethren here in Mount Olivet, it is man-made of metal and not a carved stone from nature. This was a very popular and stylish type of grave memorial that arose in the last few decades of the 19th century and known as “white bronze” markers. We have 20 of this unique variety here in the cemetery.

​These standout funerary memorials (also nicknamed "Zinkies") were the brainchild of a man named Milo Amos Richardson (1820-1900) and business partner and brother-in-law, C. J. Willard. Mr. Richardson worked as a cemetery superintendent in Chautauqua County, New York, and had observed the need for a new and better material for cemetery monuments. He set out to develop a solution of creating a material for memorials that would repel moss, algae and lichen, invasive and unwelcome guests that take up residence on traditional  gravestones, especially  monuments in shady locations within cemeteries characterized by abundant tree cover or dampness.

Richardson and Willard’s formula centered on the use of zinc carbonate. Amos Richardson, along with two business partners, tried to get a company off the ground but failed.  In 1879, the rights were sold and a new company, the Monumental Bronze Company, was incorporated in Bridgeport, Connecticut to manufacture these new monuments.
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One more innovation (that white bronze made possible) resided in the opportunity for customers to employ a myriad of popular symbols and designs of the late Victorian period on these unique monuments.  These beautifully ornate memorials became a high-selling novelty especially in the northeast, and the examples that have remained are well over a century old and look virtually new, so to speak! The name “white bronze” was given as it certainly sounded more elegant than zinc.

As for Captain Cornelius Staley, I've included his biography below and taken from Williams' History of Frederick County.

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​Terra Cotta Marker
Location: Area A/Lot 116
Date of Placement: July 1874
​Decedent: Arfue Brooks 

One of the smallest grave monuments within Mount Olivet is also one of the most thought provoking. In addition, this final resting place of a child, who died in 1874, is among the most eye-catching, as it clearly stands out against a backdrop of 40,000 other gravesites. The memorial in question is not made of marble or granite, and deceives some into thinking that it could be an above ground crypt—crafted in the shape of a small sarcophagus from ancient time.
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Before receiving a thorough cleaning a few years back from cemetery superintendent J. Ronald Pearcey, you wouldn’t have even noticed this memorial to Arfue Brooks. And if, indeed, you did find it, an attempt to read the name carved on the exterior would have been a futile and frustrating chore—but not anymore.
A bas-relief figure of a sleeping child conjures up a melancholy feeling as the onlooker is tipped off to the occupant’s age and innocence. In contrast, a sudden feeling of warmth (in any season) may follow, thanks in part to the brown-orange hue of the monument— a diversion from the vast sea of whites, grays and blacks that can be found throughout the grounds. As far as I know, this is the only terracotta monument of this color and design within the cemetery. Through research we learned that Arfue's memorial was made by a firm in Philadelphia.

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​Winebrener/Gambrill Family Monument
Location: Area Q/Lot 24 & 26
Date of Placement: after 1902
​Decedents: D. C. Winebrener, Sr., Rebecca B. (Markey) Winebrener, James H. Gambrill, Jr., Susan M. (Winebrenner) Gambrill, Rebecca G. Gambrill

​This monument has been one of the most photographed in the cemetery boasting a defiant woman wielding a cross and having an upturned finger towards heaven. The message should be clear to anyone viewing this art sculpture in stone that there is no doubt that the decedents buried here were religious, righteous and destined for heaven.

It's no surprise that the strength of this monument perfectly represents the lives of those buried beneath, particularly D.C. Winebrener and son-in-law James Henry Gambrill, Jr. (1866-1951). Both men were prominent businessmen, and extremely civic minded. Winebrener is best remembered for the "double-store" he operated at 144-148 North Market Street in the late 19th century.

James Gambrill took over the prosperous mill begun by his father on Carroll Creek at Carroll Street. We know this structure today as the Delaplaine Arts Center. Mr. Gambrill is best remembered today for his love for conservation as he is responsible for bringing awareness to many natural areas across the state, but none more special than Catoctin Mountain immediately west and northwest of Frederick City. His efforts would eventually lead to the creation of a state park which would take the Gambrill name. Both men and their spouses warrant separate "Stories in Stone" articles, which will be coming soon.

​The annual “summer to fall passage” includes the period when kids go back to school, football season kicks off, and Market Street is closed off to pedestrians for “In the Street.” The true punctuation mark that summer is yielding to the splendor of fall and pumpkin-flavored novelties is our beloved county fair, a hometown tradition—as nothing says home like the Great Frederick Fair! For those old enough to remember, the fair itself formerly was held in October (and fall itself) to correspond with the yearly harvesttime.

It may not be a largely publicized fact, but this year marks the 200th anniversary of an event that occurred in May of 1822. This was the first exhibition and cattle show in Frederick’s history. It was put on by the newly formed Frederick Agricultural Society and took place on May 23rd and 24th, 1822 at George Creager's Tavern near the Monocacy Bridge, two miles east of Frederick on the Old Baltimore Turnpike Road.
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I performed some research on the Great Frederick Fair’s earliest origins a decade ago and found that the tavern in question was actually called the Monocacy Bridge Hotel, owned by Levi Hughes. Mr. Creager apparently rented from Hughes and eventually ran into financial hardships resulting in him being sued for funds owed his landlord. The old hotel once faced south, overlooking the current Park & Ride facility that sits off MD144 two miles east of Downtown Frederick (and roughly a mile and a half from the present fairgrounds property). The original cattle exhibition was held on grounds just west of the Monocacy River and the original Jug Bridge built in 1808.  

​To my knowledge, cows haven’t been on this property in years, but retail vehicles and golf balls abound (thanks to an rv sales dealer and driving range) in this unique triangle formed between the mighty Monocacy, I-70, the Old National Pike (MD144).
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I was able to piece together the agricultural event's colorful history of the 1800s, and was honored to have the Fair Board “exhibit” my findings (complete with appropriate visuals) in the form of a large interpretive mural display. It can be found in the east entrance to the Null Building at the fairgrounds. It's a tapestry of sorts, actually printed on fabric and pulled taut by a metal frame.  If anything else, it makes great reading while waiting in line for the public restrooms found adjacent the exhibit.

​Mount Olivet has many connections to the best, and brightest, fair in the state, and we have done a number of stories under this blog heading to highlight some of the folks who have played significant roles in making the fair so successful and special. A few years ago, I even conducted a special walking tour at Mount Olivet on what has been called “Fair Day,” traditionally the second Friday while the event is in session. This was an unofficial, local holiday of sorts throughout my youth and beyond as kids used to get the full day off school. Today it’s simply an early dismissal situation, but the opportunity is still offered for children of all ages to come out to enjoy the spectacle on a weekday.

​One of the stops on our cemetery walking tour included a name once keenly associated with the fairgrounds—Charles N. Daugherty. At first, you may think he was the originator of a bustling breakfast haven that sits up on the northeast loop of the track, not far from Hemps. However, this vendor is Dougherty’s County Kitchen, and not Daugherty’s. It is named for Harry Baxter Dougherty, Jr. (1935-2018), a legendary concessionaire from Taneytown who was here at the Frederick Fair with his Country Kitchen for 48 years. He owned a successful ice company, Ice Cream Shack and real Estate operation.

​Even after Harry Dougherty's death, the Country Kitchen remains in residence here for the elongated "Fair Week." Meanwhile, Charles Daugherty was a permanent, year-round fixture of the Frederick Fairgrounds. This familiar figure served as the property’s caretaker.

​Charles N. Daugherty came to Frederick via Gettysburg in the year 1909, at which time he was appointed caretaker. The fairground was only 40 acres in size, but would be enlarged to 60 during his tenure. He had a hand in building, re-building and supervising construction of all the structures on the premises before his retirement in 1950. He has been described as a “versatile artisan” and spent nights here when the grounds were bustling with fairgoers in the heart of fall, all major holidays and the darkest/coldest days of winter.

​Charles Norman Daugherty was born on February 18th, 1879, the son of Jacob L. and Mary (Pfeffer) Daugherty. He spent his youth on the family farm in Cumberland Township, Adams County, PA. He was married on December 8th, 1901 at the Mount Joy Lutheran Parsonage in Barlow, Adams County, PA. His bride was a Frederick girl named Mary Maud Solt, daughter of Jacob Berry Solt, the then-caretaker of the Frederick Fairgrounds on East Patrick Street.

​The young couple lived in Cumberland Township after their nuptials and would have three children: Margaret (b. 1902), Edward (b. 1908), and Mary (b. 1911). They would move to the Frederick area before Edward's birth in 1908.

In 1909, Jacob B. Solt announced his intent of retiring from his position as keeper of the Frederick Fairgrounds. He asked the Fair’s Board of Directors if his son-in-law, Charles, would be permitted to take over his job. Mr. Solt went one step further in promising that if Mr. Daugherty did not perform job duties to a satisfactory manner, that he would re-assume duties as keeper.
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Charles got the job and, sufficed to say,  successfully  passed his 90-day review and then some. By the year 1917, he was being paid $2.00/day for his services as groundskeeper.

​Charles N. Daugherty faithfully served until April 1st, 1950, completing 41 years of service. His replacement would be a gentleman named Guy Wetzel (1900-1971) who is also buried in Mount Olivet with Charles' predecessor, father-in-law Jacob B. Solt who had died in 1925.

An event likely prompting Mr. Daugherty's retirement was the death of wife Maud on May 16th, 1949. She would be laid to rest just a few feet from her parents and her daughter Margaret who died at age seven back in March of 1910.

Charles took up residence off the fairgrounds property for the first time in 40+ years. He would move to 920 Motter Avenue across from Staley Park in the north end of Frederick City. His son Edward was living there in the 1940 and 1950 census records. Charles sold the property to Edward in 1949, and his grandson Edward Daugherty, Jr. still lives here. An alley that runs behind the house is called Daugherty Alley.

Charles died in August, 1964 and was buried in the Solt family lot in Mount Olivet's Area OO/Lot 26. Maud's parents Jacob and Elizabeth are buried directly behind the Daughertys. Daughters Margaret Elizabeth Daugherty (1902-1910) and Mary Helen Daugherty (1911-2003) are buried here also. 

Charles N. Daugherty took good, or should I say great, care of the fair, and we owe him a debt of gratitude for being among those of Frederick's past who gave us the fruits of Frederick present that we enjoy today. The Great Frederick Fair is certainly one of our community's prized possessions to call our own.

Come visit our Friends of Mount Olivet booth at the Frederick Fair (under the West Grandstand). Come visit Chris and other Mount Olivet staff and ask to play the "Stories in Stone" Trivia Challenge for an opportunity to win Mount Olivet history memorabilia.

​One of the earliest big starlets of “the silver screen” was Gloria Swanson. Born in 1899, Gloria May Josephine Swanson was born in Chicago in 1899. She first achieved fame by acting in silent movies in the late teens and early 1920s. She became a fast favorite of legendary film producer/director Cecil B. DeMille and became his leading lady in a string of films, commonly called "moving pictures" in those early days. The actress was nominated three times for Academy Awards and is best known for her portrayal of Norma Desmond in Billy Wilder’s Sunset Boulevard, completing a major career comeback in the 1950 offering. 

Gloria Swanson is said to have impacted “Roaring 20s” fashion by popularizing hairstyles, rising hemlines, and high-heel shoes decorated with imitation pearls and stones. Plain and simply, she was a major icon at a time when the motion picture industry and star-power celebrity was just getting started. Other leading actors and actresses of this period included Lilian Gish and Greta Garbo, and male leads such as Charlie Chaplin and Rudolph Valentino.

As one of the first major movie stars, young Miss Swanson had Frederick, Maryland under her “proverbial” spell in the early 1920s. I found advertisements heralding her film appearances at local theaters. I also uncovered related gimmicks by local merchants in peddling Gloria Swanson inspired candies, stockings and hats. A local beauty salon even boasted “Gloria Swanson Day” in 1923.

​The previous year, in early May of 1922, the Frederick News-Post announced a unique “Swanson- themed” competition, asking the question, “What Frederick County girl most resembles Gloria Swanson?” This promotion was being undertaken by Mr. Walter Decker, manager of Frederick’s City Opera House. Many of our readers have been to the theater’s former location on North Market Street as it serves home to Brewer’s Alley Restaurant.

​This “Resemblance Contest” was a great marketing ploy by the Paramount Motion Picture Company in promoting Miss Swanson’s latest movie offering, entitled Beyond the Rocks and co-starring Swanson's friend, male heart-throb Rudolph Valentino. As an aside, this particular motion picture was one of cinema’s most famous lost films—until 2003, when a print was found hidden away in the Netherlands among the possessions of an eccentric collector.

​The entrant deadline came on the night of May 8th, and judging took place that night with an announcement of the winners in the following day’s paper.

​The local winner was a girl named Grace Irene Smith who spent most of her life living at 223 West 5th Street in Frederick. The property the Smith family owned from 1906-1926 is home to Frederick’s Salvation Army headquarters these days which sits between Trail Avenue and Bruner Alley.

​Well-known and popular, Grace Smith was born on July 30th, 1906. I couldn’t find much regarding her childhood, but she was said to have been popular among friends. I’m sure “resembling” the top movie-star of the day also had its perks as well.

​Grace had two sisters and her father, Harvey E. Smith, worked as a “drayman.” Although I had seen this term before, I had to look this vintage profession up to get a better understanding. A drayman was historically the driver of a dray, a low, flat-bed wagon without sides, pulled generally by horses or mules that were used to transport all kinds of goods.

​Today the term drayman is still used in US ports for truck drivers who deliver containers to and from ports. Its also used for brewery delivery men, and has been for centuries. I guess you could consider the most famous dray that which is pulled by the famed Budweiser Clydesdales.

​Interestingly I found out quite a bit on Mr. Smith which we will get to in a minute. On my initial search of his name in newspaperarchives.com, my first “hit” features an advertisement in the local newspaper for his hauling business. Ironically, above his listing was an advertisement for a Gloria Swanson movie.

​The Smith family moved out of Frederick City in 1926 to Oak Orchard, a 20-acre farm owned by the Dudderar family since 1836. This sat off the Liberty-New Windsor Road in eastern Frederick County at the junction of the aptly named Oak Orchard Road. Today the Smith’s former home can be found at 14802 Oak Orchard Road. Again, I haven’t gleaned why a move was made, however Mr. Smith was a native of the Johnsville area so perhaps there could be a familial connection to the area. There also could have been need for a move to “greener pastures” for health reasons because our “Gloria Swanson” doppelganger would die in December of that year at Oak Orchard.

​Grace passed on December 3rd, 1926 at the age of 20 due to complications associated with diabetes. Her obituary also made mention of Grace’s accomplishment four years earlier in winning Mr. Decker’s “Resemblance Contest.” 

​She would be buried in a plot in Mount Olivet's Area U/Lot 124. My hope is that a current day cousin/family member reads this story and can give us more about the life of this young lady who died much too young. I wonder if the prized gold watch is also in someone's possession, or is it long gone? 

​Of course, we can learn more about individuals through their family ties. Since I did not find much on Grace, primarily due to her shortened life, I discovered that her father was quite a well-known individual in the area. The local newspaper featured a thorough article on Mr. Smith in 1953 on the occasion of his 81st birthday. The article shows particular interest in his former profession as a drayman.

​Harvey E. Smith died in 1960, outliving his wife (Olivia) and daughter Margaret. All three are buried in Mount Olivet’s Area U/Lot 124 with Grace who had died decades earlier.

In 1950, the year that Grace's sister Margaret died, Gloria Swanson made a historic comeback in the highly acclaimed Sunset Boulevard, for which she received her third Oscar nomination for her role as a former silent-film star named Norma Desmond. The film stars William Holden as Joe Gillis, a struggling screenwriter who is drawn into Norma’s demented fantasy world, where she dreams of making a triumphant return to the screen. 

​Although Gloria appeared in a few later films, she devoted most of the remainder of her career to television and the theatre. Her autobiography, Swanson on Swanson, was published in 1980. The man who helped Gloria write this book was William Duffy, her sixth husband. They came together thanks to a book written by Duffy in 1975 entitled Sugar Blues, which has become a dietary classic, which has sold over 1.5 million copies.

Of course this resonated with me because our subject, Grace Smith, died due to complications attributed to diabetes. ​I researched this more and was intrigued to learn that Duffy uses the narrative form to delve into the history of sugar and history of medicine. Gloria had been a health and fitness advocate throughout her life. She took fitness to the next level with dancing, weight training and even yoga. In the 1920s, she started practicing clean eating and cut out both white sugar and meat from her diet. In the 1960s, Gloria met Duffy and convinced him that white sugar was unsafe. Dufty undertook a program of research of the impact that sugar has had on health, science and capitalism, and wrote Sugar Blues in 1975. Gloria traveled the United States promoting Sugar Blues, and the couple married the following year.

Gloria Swanson died of a heart ailment in 1983, at the age of 84. Her mortal remains reside at the Episcopal Church of Heavenly Rest Columbarium in Manhattan.

​Labor Day weekend is here once again, a tribute to the contributions and achievements of American workers and traditionally observed on the first Monday in September. This year that falls on September 5th.

Labor Day was created by the labor movement in the late 19th century and became a federal holiday in 1894. This week’s “Story in Stone” pays tribute to a Fredericktonian who we can attest to as a faithful employee who “labored” at the time the holiday originated. However, I’m not quite sure if he had that very first Labor Day, itself, off, let alone the entire weekend during that inaugural year of 1894. If not, let’s hope that he had a three-day weekend in 1895 or 1896.

The grave of this man, John A. Brooks, recently caught my eye for two specific reasons. First, his gravestone was recently cleaned—making it clearly legible. And second, I was intrigued by the following transcription on his gravestone :

“For 14 years a faithful and honest messenger for Montevue Hospital.”

​So, you now may, or may not, have two questions for me. What does a messenger do in his or her profession? What is, or was, the Montevue Hospital?

A messenger in the sense of the word here carried messages, telegrams and mail between Frederick City and the hospital via a wagon. Today, we are more familiar with bike messengers in big cities. In a hospital setting, a messenger is responsible for assisting clinical personnel in transferring patients to and from beds, wheelchairs or stretcher. They also assist people in and out of vehicles, and escort or transport patients to and from the hospital lobby.

​We’ve now given a job description, so what about the location in which John A. Brooks faithfully labored from 1892-1906? Many longtime residents are familiar with the Montevue Hospital, whose name translates to “mountain view.” This was the “county home,” or almshouse, which provided care for those unable to help themselves. I recall this impressive building fondly from my youth and younger days before its demolition in 1987.

​Since I grew up northwest of Frederick in the Rocky Springs area, the grand structure was an unmistakable landmark along the west side of Rosemont Avenue as it becomes Yellow Springs Road. Directly across from Fort Detrick, the site now serves as the Frederick County Health Department, and the name survives today as the Montevue Assisted Living and Citizens Care & Rehabilitation Center. I even visited residents here on a few occasions through my time with Cub Scouts.

​Frederick’s first “almshouse” opened in the 1770s after state assembly authorization at a location on West Patrick Street. It would be lost to fire, but a new one would be built in the same vicinity of Bentztown as the first. This was built at 261-263 West Patrick Street. It was west of Bentz Street on the north side of the thoroughfare, and apparently backed up to Carroll Creek. It even had its own burial ground, long since gone and unmarked although the bodies likely remain.

​By 1830, a larger almshouse was needed to properly serve the community. This would be built in 1830 on a 94-acre parcel  given by the family of Elias and Catherine Brunner. The location was outside the city limits (at that time), off the Fourth Street Extension, later named Rosemont Avenue. Henry Steiner, Jr. (1790-1868) was appointed overseer. He is buried in Mount Olivet’s area E/Lot 95. This almshouse would sustain itself as a farm with inmates helping in its operation. Local produce sold would help with the funding.

​In 1870, a new, larger structure was needed on the premises. The county almshouse site seriously evolved with the construction of Montevue Hospital. The new, 4 1/2-story brick facility cost $125,000 to build and featured significant improvements such as a dining hall and a second kitchen. When construction was complete in January 1871, many of the residents from the older facility were transferred over, and the former almshouse building was demolished. As an important aside, black residents didn’t have the same access to the important upgrades offered at Montevue, and were quartered in the “Old House,” a farmhouse which remained on site until a new, segregated building was constructed around 1897. This building was later renovated into the Emergency Hospital which operated between 1934 and 1955. It still stands today and serves as home to the Frederick County Extension Service.

​By 1877, Montevue Hospital had the second largest resident population among Maryland’s public almhouses and asylums. This is where our friend John A. Brooks proudly labored. I’ve come across a few old photos of this facility and wonder if any of those folks within can be him?

​By 1930, the purpose of Montevue Hospital and associated buildings had shifted. As new hospitals were constructed and social services expanded, there were fewer children and older patients residing at the facility. Montevue continued to provide shelter for transients, the elderly poor, the mentally ill and those in need of medical care, especially African Americans who had few other resources. As the 20th century moved forward, Montevue’s farming and medical facilities were de-emphasized and the property was developed for different uses. In 1987, Montevue was demolished. The site now serves as the County Health Department.

​Okay, one final question now that we know what a hospital “messenger” is, and what the famed Montevue was like, at least at the time before, during, and immediately after Mr. Brooks’ tenure. Who was this John A. Brooks? Well, I’ve labored to find info but have come up empty. Our cemetery records have nothing of note beyond the information that can be gleaned on his stone. He died on July 3rd, 1906, aged 73, but no birthdate including year is given.
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We can narrow down the date thanks to the 1900 US Census which shows John living at Montevue, with his birthdate listed as August, 1833. This census record states that he was born in Maryland as were his parents. In addition, a son named Charles F. Haines (b. 1873) was living on the premises and employed as a laborer. The different surname certainly threw me a curveball, as does the fact that I couldn’t find a “Charles F. Haines” (born 1873) in our cemetery records or in the census records. 

​So, if John A. Brooks had a son, who was John’s wife? A little more digging had me finding a census record from 1900. ​Here was John A. Brooks with wife Susan R. Brooks living in Mount Pleasant.

As many are aware, the US Census of 1890 was lost to a fire, so other methods have to be sought to try to research folks during that 2--year gap between 1880 and 1900. A check in Jacob Holdcraft’s “Names in Stone” showed that Mrs. Brooks had died on June 5th, 1888 and buried in Mount Olivet. Our records confirmed this fact and, voila, I found her buried on Area H/Lot 134 amidst a family by the name of Koontz. I’m hypothesizing that Susan was a Koontz.

​I next found an interesting article in the local paper dated August 27, 1891, just three years after Susan’s death at age 35.

​What did John A. Brooks possibly do to get sentenced to Montevue? Was he living the life of a homeless tramp, or was he an addict of some sort, or possibly mentally ill? Whatever the situation, it seems that it was an important life event as he would eventually make this location his final home and career up through his death in 1906.

​I found a few articles that mention his re-appointment as messenger at Montevue, but nothing more until his obituary and funeral notices in July, 1906. Apparently, an amputated toe helped lead to his demise.

So I will labor no further, and enjoy my three-day weekend. If you want to “work” on the life of John A. Brooks, please be my guest. Let me know what you find, and I will add it into the published story—but not before Tuesday, September 6th mind you.

​“Angelic Bookends,” that’s what they are. These two funerary pieces can be found in Mount Olivet’s Area U/Lot 123. They mark the graves of Laura Jane and Ann Elizabeth Kehne, two sisters who died in their early youth and just a decade apart from one another.
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The pieces in question employ a “throwback,” or vintage, design of a cherub commonly referred to as a “child-angel.” This iconic figure from the Victorian era is a symbol of innocence and immortality. In cemeteries, monuments of this type usually denote the grave of a baby or a child.  When they adorn the grave of an adult, their meaning might be more representative of the soul’s entrance into paradise than a connection to childhood.

​I assumed available information on these decedents would be light as these two youngsters spent a combined 14 years of existence in this world. Hopefully, someone out there reading this piece will add more about them (and the family) in the comment section (at the end of this article) as the girls’ parents have both passed within the last 20 years.
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The extent of information on Ann Elizabeth Kehne can be found in her obituary and funeral notice in the local newspaper from 1957. Born January 6th, 1955, Ann only attained the age of two, dying three days after her birthday on January 9th, 1957. Our cemetery records show that although the family was living in Frederick’s Monocacy Village (912 Cherokee Trail) at the time, the toddler died of encephalitis while hospitalized in Baltimore.

​Just over a year after Ann Elizabeth’s death, the Kehnes had reason to rejoice as they were blessed with the birth of a second daughter on March 3rd, 1958. She was given the name Laura Jane. I wasn’t expecting to find much about this youngster in the newspaper either, but I was wrong as I  immediately found a photograph of her in an edition of the Frederick Post from October 17th, 1962. It shows Laura Jane undergoing ambulation therapy. For those not familiar with the term, “ambulation” is the ability to walk without the need for any kind of assistance.

​The picture’s caption said that this therapy had taken place at the Frederick Easter Seals Health Center. This facility opened in 1957 and was once located at the Odd Fellows Home on North Market Street. It served not only Frederick County, but our neighboring counties as well. Now, some of our younger readers may be asking, “What is/are Easter Seals?” Easterseals (formerly known as Easter Seals) is a charity founded in 1919 as the National Society for Crippled Children. It is a 501(c)3 nonprofit organization providing disability services, with additional support areas serving veterans and military families, seniors, and caregivers.

​The name "Easter Seals" came from an earlier fundraising program begun in 1934 with colorful adhesive seals, the size of postage stamps being sold around Easter. Purchasers could stick these on the back of mailed envelopes, as a popular tradition was to send cards to friends and family both at Christmas and Easter seasons. Because of the program's success, the organization changed its name from "the National Society for Crippled Children" to "Easter Seals."

​Another photograph of little Laura had appeared a few months earlier in the Frederick newspaper. It showed Laura, with her mother (Elizabeth), receiving assistance from Frederick’s Zonta Club. I would find another at the end of 1963 with a visit from Santa.

​Right when I began thinking that my young subject (Laura) could have been some sort of posterchild for children with disabilities, I read the heartwarming news on January 3rd, 1964 that Laura had been named Maryland’s Easter Seal Child.
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An informative article appeared in March of 1964. Laura was making great progress and was a shining example and ambassador for the work the Easter Seals organization was doing.

​I found nothing more at hand during my cursory checks of old newspapers and the internet, save for some school class pictures appearing in newspaper. Laura would go on to attend the Visitation Academy from what I could see.

​Sadly, the last mention of Laura Jane Kehne came in the form of her obituary in late August of 1967. She, like her sister, died in Baltimore. This occurred on August 25th of that year at the tender age of 8. Laura would be buried a few days later in Mount Olivet, roughly five yards away from the “older” sister she never had the chance to know. A “child-angel” monument was added to mark her final resting place, just like the one that had been placed on Ann Elizabeth Kehne’s grave a decade earlier.

​Visiting the sisters graves this week, I sought to learn more about the basis of these particular funerary monuments. In their online blog entitled Cemetery Insights and Beyond, authors Dave and Linda Vichiola-Coppola state that:

“Cherubs appear in the Book of Genesis and are ranked as one of the highest orders of angels. As the Bible story goes, after Adam and Eve’s banishment from the garden of Eden, God stationed a cherub holding a flaming sword to guard the entrance. It was not hard for the faithful of long ago to imagine the cherubim as sentinels. The traditional image of a cherub was not cute or childlike at all. In modern times we find it difficult to envision a winged infant (or a young child) holding a flaming sword and assuming a strong stance to ward of intruders. Our perception of the cherub was changed by two important developments during the 19th Century: archaeological discoveries and a set of new social values.

In the mythology of ancient Greece and Rome, the god of love was depicted as a young boy. Yet, neither the Greek god Eros or the Roman god Cupid is depicted as a baby. Lin Vertefeuille of Ringling Docents.org points out that the image of the cherub as a baby more closely resembles a nature spirit known in ancient Greek and Roman mythology as genius/genii. The same images of the winged babies appeared in masterpieces of art from the Renaissance and Baroque periods, but they were called putti (putto, singular). During the Victorian era, there was a revival of classical art sparked by major archaeological excavations that were taking place in Greece. The winged baby image of the genii decorated the artifacts that were unearthed. The image appealed to the Victorians because of its resemblance to the infant angels that were depicted in masterworks of art from the Renaissance and Baroque periods.

The Coppolas go on to say, “While archaeology played a role in the cherub’s physical characteristics of the 1800’s, a growing cultural concern over the well-being of children made the cherub a popular cemetery monument. Prior to the 20th century, the death rates for children and infants were staggering. Before the time of major medical advancements, many infants died at birth and those that survived had to make it through childhood without succumbing to infectious diseases. Poverty levels in industrialized areas and the lack of child labor laws made children more prone to life-threatening health problems.”​

​Annette Stott, a writer for the website Nineteenth Century Art-Worldwide, explains, “High mortality rates boosted the value of children….an ideal of childhood arose that stressed the natural innocence and joyfulness of children.” Advocates of child labor laws during the late 1800’s helped prompt growing social concerns over the well-being of children. The treasured values of childhood were frequently depicted in Victorian art and literature. The images of the putti that decorated the Greek artifacts resembled a baby angel, just as the Roman and Greek god(s) of love (Cupid and Eros) resembled an angel child. So, when a child died, the Victorian cherub served as an appropriate graveside symbol of innocence and youth. Today, the Victorian cherub remains a popular cemetery icon to mark the graves of children and infants. 

​Many examples exist within the historic section of the cemetery. A more modern angel can be found close to the Kehne sister on the east side of Area U as the prime marker for a unique section called “Babyland.” I know the name catches some off guard, but this is a specific area designated for infants and toddlers. Young children of this age were originally buried in Area M, also known as “Stranger’s Row,” a charitable area where bodies of deceased visitors to town (without family elsewhere) could be buried, as well as indigent persons, or those widowing wives and orphaning children with little to no means to bury their loved one. Many infants were buried here in economical, “smaller designed” lots—helping to relieve a financial strain from families not having family plots (or planning for them in the prime of life as young adults).

​When photographing the Kehne “child-angel” monuments for this story, I struggled to find the girls’ parents anywhere nearby. I simply found a large family marker for the lot-holding Hoffman family. Once back in the office, our database revealed that parents Harold Dorsey Kehne and Elizabeth Eloise “Boots” (Shoemaker) Kehne were buried in Area FSK/Lot 105. This is a section to the immediate north of the Mausoleum/Office complex in the back section of Mount Olivet. This is nowhere close to Area U where Ann and Laura are located. A secondary question came to me in addition to “Who were these young “angels?” — “Why are these girls not buried with their parents in the same location?”

​I soon found the Hoffmans to be the maternal great-grandparents of Laura Jane and Ann Elizabeth Kehne (grandparents to the fore-mentioned Elizabeth (Shoemaker) Kehne. This took a little detective work—fitting because original lot-holder George Jacob Hoffman (b. 1868) was a Frederick City policeman. Mr. Hoffman died at age 53 at his home at 152 East South Street in 1922. He would be the first of his immediate family to be buried here in a plot shared with his great-granddaughters.

​George’s widow, Annie Hoffman would continue living in her home on Frederick’s southside off East South Street. This a fairly recognizable rowhouse that still stands today across from the Frederick County Public Schools headquarters building on the northwest corner of East South and South East streets. The house at #152 is the easternmost townhome here, just down from Winchester Street. Regular readers of this blog may recall that the name of this street comes from Benjamin F. Winchester who opened a brick manufactory in this vicinity. This would eventually become Frederick Brick Works. Benjamin was the brother of Hiram Winchester, a New England schoolteacher who was responsible for the Frederick Female Seminary on East Church Street in the 1840s. This is today known as Winchester Hall and serves home to our local Frederick County Government.

​Back to our Kehne sisters and their great-grandmother Annie (buried between them), Mrs. Hoffman is listed as head of household in the 1930 census. Her sons worked as salesmen for a nearby ice plant operation, while her daughter, Margaret, and granddaughter, Elizabeth, also lived here. The puzzling thing for me here came in the realization that six-year-old Elizabeth Shoemaker was listed as “Elizabeth Hoffman” and that her supposed mother, Margaret Hoffman was only 11 years her senior at age 17? I thought that perhaps Margaret was simply an aunt and that there was a missing, or deceased, son of Mrs. Annie Hoffman who could be the father of Elizabeth prompting the name Hoffman here in this census record. Her mother would be missing as well.
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Our cemetery records did not provide me with the names of Elizabeth’s parents, however, my research assistant Marilyn Veek answered these questions for me. She showed me that George and Annie Hoffman's daughter, Margaret Laura Hoffman, married a man named Jacob Arthur Shoemaker, Sr. and that Elizabeth was the daughter of Margaret Hoffman. I checked our database and found Margaret and Jacob Arthur buried here in Mount Olivet (Area FF/Lot 294). Our records show Margaret’s birthdate as February 15th, 1904, thus proving that the 1930 census showing of her age as 17 was erroneous. She was actually 27 and plenty capable of having a six-year-old daughter in 1930.
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When I looked for Mr. Shoemaker in the 1930 Census, I found him also living with Margaret, but at a location around the corner at #10 Winchester Street—and they had other children too!

​In Ancestry.com, I found the R.L. Polk Frederick City directory from 1928-1929 that listed both Jacob and Margaret Shoemaker as living at 152 E. South Street, the former Hoffman family home. They must have moved nearby shortly thereafter. Margaret was a machine operator at a tailoring business and Jacob was an electrician with Frederic Iron and Steel Company. As an aside, I found a small article in a paper from 1916 that stated that Jacob had run away from home, but not for long. This occurred just months after the youth was “stunned” by a bolt of lightning that struck near his church in Braddock Heights.

​Naturally, I expected to find Elizabeth living with her mother and Mr. Shoemaker in the 1940 census. Instead, Elizabeth was still residing with her grandmother and maternal uncles on Winchester Street. Maybe the house on Winchester wasn’t big enough? Or perhaps Elizabeth got along better with her grandmother than mother, we may never know?

​Meanwhile, Margaret Hoffman Shoemaker can be found living at #10 Winchester Street with three children: Jane, Jacob Arthur, Jr., and Cleora.

Elizabeth can be found once again living with her grandmother Hoffman in spring of 1950, and she is listed as an elementary school teacher. She had graduated from Frederick High School in 1940 and from State Teachers College at Towson in 1944. She would later earn her master's degree from University of Maryland at College Park.

​Just a few months after this census was taken, she would be married in the month of July in a double wedding ceremony with a younger sister named Cleora (Cleo) Shoemaker (1930-2015).

​Mr. Kehne was a former veteran of World War II and may be remembered for owning a gas station, Kehne’s Citgo on the corner of East and East 13th Streets, not far from his family’s home in Monocacy Village. He owned this from 1957-1974 and That station still exists today as the East Street Liberty.

​The Kehnes would have three children, the fore-mentioned Ann and Laura, and a son David. Harold Dorsey Kehne, age 86, of Frederick, passed away at Frederick Memorial Hospital. He was a graduate of Frederick High School (class of 1943). After selling his business, Mr. Keene attended the University of Maryland and studied education, likely inspired by his wife. He taught at Middletown High School, West Frederick Middle School, and New Market Middle School, until his retirement in 1986.

A teacher for 31 years, Mrs. Kehne first taught at Emmitsburg Junior High School and at several other schools including Elm Street School and Frederick High School. When she returned to teaching after having children, she taught at Frederick Academy of the Visitation and then returned to teaching public school. An early advocate for special needs students, she started the county's physical education program at Harmony Grove School and then moved to Rock Creek School when it opened in 1972. This would lead to her election into the Alvin G. Quinn Sports Hall of Fame. Her unselfish service and belief in impaired students led her to strive for successful creation of the Frederick County Special Olympics. She coached students to numerous championships in various sports and created for her teams and students the opportunity to achieve beyond all expectations. Somewhere along the way, she picked up the nickname “Boots.”

​Elizabeth’s brother-in-law, Max S. Kehne, is also a member of this prestigious group of local athletes and sports pioneers recognized in the Quinn Hall of Fame (housed at the Frederick County YMCA). Max Kehne is still remembered as most famous softball pitcher in Frederick County history, and a member of the Maryland Softball Hall of Fame. He was also a key area sports promoter and a member of Frederick City Board of Aldermen at the time of his untimely death due to an automobile accident. Max S. Kehne Park on West 7th Street is named in his honor.

​Elizabeth S. Kehne retired in 1986. She was active in the Frederick City Recreation Council, serving for many years as the council's secretary. Following her retirement, she was a volunteer tutor with the Literacy Council of Frederick and enjoyed spending time with family and friends in Frederick and in Rehoboth, Delaware.

​I found that surviving son David helped establish the Harold D. and Elizabeth S. Kehne Scholarship Fund in 2015 with the Community Foundation of Frederick County. The fund’s purpose is to provide scholarships to graduates of Frederick High School or Gov. Thomas Johnson High School pursuing a career in education. Preference is given but not limited to students attending Towson University, University of Maryland College Park, or one of these educational institutions’ extension campuses. Since the fund was created, it has helped students pursue careers in education just as the Kehnes did.
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So, there it is. I figured out who the interesting monuments in Area U were “bookending,” so far from the gravesite of their educator parents. I had become intrigued with Elizabeth’s challenges throughout her life. Her resilience as evidenced by her educational pursuits and achievement are evident that she persevered despite any initial setbacks. I will say that knowing this information about Elizabeth’s childhood and professional career, certainly makes me respect her even more knowing that she lost Ann Elizabeth at such an early age, and was forced to endure the incredible stress of having Laura and working so dutifully as a mother with assisting her daughter in the everyday challenges revolving around disabilities. As we know, this would end with Laura’s untimely death as well.

​I never knew Elizabeth Eloise (Shoemaker) Kehne, but when I visited her gravesite here in Mount Olivet, several hundred yards from that of her daughters, I thought to myself that perhaps there should be one more “child-angel” monument placed here on her grave as well.  

In my professional past, I've had the opportunity (on more than one occasion) to visit rock quarries. I was working on a documentary back in the late 1990s which I named Monocacy: the Pre-history of Frederick County, Maryland. This project involved an investigation into the geologic history of our region, and what better way to see the rocks deep below the ground surface of today, than visiting a quarry? In addition to the old LeGore (current-day Barrick Quarry) near Woodsboro, I also filmed at another large operation north of Buckeystown--the former Essroc Quarry, now known as the Vulcan Materials Company.

Of course we have the Martin Marietta Quarry (formerly LaFarge) only a mile from Mount Olivet Cemetery to the southeast. This comprises an earlier quarry known as the M. J. Grove Lime Company.  Gravestone conservators like Jonathan Appell have told me that the daily blasts at this site have caused movement to some of our taller, ornate, multi-piece grave monuments over the years. Of course, we all know that East South Street/Reichs Ford Road is no stranger to sinkholes as well thanks to this operation from time to time . In fact, my former in-laws had to have one of their Golden Retrievers rescued after falling into a sinkhole on the Maryland School for the Deaf property north of Monocacy Boulevard.

I was also introduced to smaller rock quarries from our past, sprinkled throughout the county, including, of course, the visitor-friendly, former site of the Fountain Rock Quarry. This is a county park today and has a nature center to compliment the remains of lime kilns and a nice boardwalk in which to traverse the water- filled quarry cavity. My kids loved it.

From my vast experience in researching Frederick history, I know of many more places once mined for limestone on local farms. A while back, I wrote a "Story in Stone" that featured the Schley Quarry, once located north of the Frederick Fairgrounds property and today's Highland Street.

The first quarry that I ever heard of, comes from my youth growing up in the Rocky Springs area northwest of Frederick City. Although I never tried it for myself, I heard stories of kids swimming at a quarry positioned south of Shookstown Road. It's still around, and today is more commonly referred to as  Lake Coventry. It's tucked within the residential community of Willowdale,  just west of the Frederick Elks Club.

At one time, this location was discussed as a possible water reservoir to feed Frederick City but this idea never materialized.

This location was infamously memorable to me as I recall the news while I was in high school of a fellow teen, only a couple years older than me, drowning in the old quarry. That was enough to make me leery of quarry swimming for a lifetime. The Shookstown Quarry like others had flooded out many years before from aquifers seeping water through its lowest levels. Many local kids used it as our “swimming hole" for decades.​

​Robin Lee Zimmerman was buried at Resthaven Memorial Gardens. I found an article in the Frederick paper just four months later that reported a car was retrieved from this quarry. I've never seen a quarry used to dispose of stolen vehicles while watching my children play GTA ("Grand Theft Auto" video game series), but apparently it was a thing back in the day.

​That would be one more reason not to jump in a quarry, as you may land on a car! Not to mention the gas, oil and anti-freeze from the vehicle that now comprises the soothing water. The newspaper articles regarding Mr. Zimmerman's death cite earlier fatalities here at Shookstown in 1977 and 1955. I even read an online recollection from a former co-worker (Jack Spinnler) at Frederick Visitor Center in which he said that he almost lost his life there at the Shookstown Quarry site when he was 16, due to a diving mishap. 

Drowning is the number one cause of death in abandoned mining locations. Most people involved in this type of accident originally went to a quarry for swimming or ATV riding. Quarries are extremely dangerous places to swim. Steep drop-offs, deep water, sharp rocks, flooded equipment, submerged wire, and industrial waste make swimming risky. 

​Another risk factor is the very cold water. Many quarry operations excavate to depths below the water table and use pumps to keep the mine dry while it is in operation. When mining stops, the pumps are turned off and the quarry floods by the inflow of cold groundwater. This groundwater inflow can keep the quarry water very cold, even in late summer.

Jumping or falling into cold water can be fatal--even for a young healthy person. Here is a quote from the National Institute of Health on how the human body responds to sudden immersion in cold water:

"A fall in skin temperature elicits a powerful cardiorespiratory response, termed "cold shock," comprising an initial gasp, hypertension, and hyperventilation despite a profound hypocapnia. The respiratory responses to skin cooling override both conscious and other autonomic respiratory controls and may act as a precursor to drowning."

I also wrote a "Story in Stone" about the previously mentioned Grove family tied to multiple quarries. Although focusing on baseball with a pivot point of Harry Grove, namesake of our local stadium, I recalled the family's successful business endeavor at Frederick and another location at Lime Kiln, located on MD route 85 just above Buckeystown.

The M.J. Grove Lime Company was one of the largest and most successful companies of its kind. It was founded in 1860 by Manassas J. Grove with his son William. Grove, a Frederick County native born in 1824, worked as a teacher, merchant, surveyor, and postmaster until he decided to capitalize on the increasing use of lime for agricultural purposes. He purchased a tract of limestone land along the main line of the Baltimore & Ohio Railroad, five miles south of Frederick, which became the village of Lime Kiln, and began manufacturing lime.

In November, 2020, The City Of Frederick's Preservation Planner, Lisa Mroszczyk Murphy, wrote about Frederick's quarries in her amazing Preservation Matters series found in the Frederick News-Post.  She had this to say about the father of our stadium namesake (Harry Grove):

"In 1902, the M.J. Grove Lime Company erected a stone crushing mill at the Frederick plant to supply crushed stone for railroad ballast and hard surfaced roads. In 1905 the company entered into road building and bridge construction and went on to build one of the first concrete roads in the state. By 1906, the company was producing 1,000,000 bushels of lime yearly and established itself as one of the largest industries in the county. The company also established quarries in Buckeystown, Stevens City, Virginia, and Washington, D.C.
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M.J. Grove died in 1907 and his sons continued to operate the company well into the 20th century. In 1910, a report by the Maryland Geological Survey described the Frederick quarry of the M.J. Grove Lime Company as the largest near Frederick. It also reported that they operated 17 kilns and had other steel-clad kilns under construction. Notable projects by the company included supplying stone for the White House grounds and for water filtration at McMillan Reservoir in Washington, D.C. In 1925, a concrete and cinder block plant was constructed at the Frederick location in order to utilize the fines from the crushed stone plant. In 1960, the company became a division of the Flintkote Company." 

So back to abandoned quarries, I recently came across an early tragedy involving the site tied to the Grove's operation at Lime Kiln. This event involved a father and son, James F. Burch, a Virginia native from Loudoun County, and his five-year-old son, William Clarence. This event occurred in August, 1901.

I immediately wanted to locate this quarry and went to an atlas map and Google Earth for clarification.

James and Clarence were laid to rest in Mount Olivet's Area K on the northern boundary of the cemetery near the Key Chapel location. During the Civil War, this exact location was the site of "a Union Row" of graves of northern soldiers who died of wounds suffered at nearby battlefields or of disease/illness. Many of these grave spots were repurposed as single grave lots, many going to destitute persons and infant decedents after the vast majority of soldiers were relocated to the national cemetery at Sharpsburg which opened in 1868.

I was interested to learn more about Mr. Burch and his backstory. We didn't find much. James F. Burch's parents were Francis E. Burch and Henrietta P. Newton Burch. He was born in Loudoun Co, VA, but the family moved to the Poolesville area in the 1870s. His parents and various other aunts, uncles and relatives are buried at Monocacy Cemetery in Beallsville.  James didn't own property, and worked as a laborer for the Grove Lime Company. My assistant Marilyn could not pinpoint exactly where he and his family were living, but it was likely Lime Kiln or neighboring Buckeystown to the south.
 
Speaking of south, the Findagrave record for Francis Burch says that he was a Confederate Veteran, 1861-1865 (American Civil War), as a member of "Jacob's Mounted Riflemen", Mounted Infantry, VA. There are no military records of his service with the Confederate States of America (CSA) that we could find.
 
Henrietta Burch died in 1906 in Washington, DC. Two of her children also lived in DC. James F. Burch's siblings included Henry Clay Burch and Robert Lee Burch, (historical figure names) as well as a sister Margaret (Burch) Dove. As an aside, one of Margaret Dove's daughters became Sister Mary Ignatius Loyola Dove, and is buried at the Visitation Convent Cemetery here in Frederick. Another sibling of James F. Burch was John Lewis Burch, who died after jumping off a railroad bridge in Washington, DC in 1909.

As if the loss of her husband and young son wasn't terrible enough, Jennie (Carson) Burch would be widowed and now found herself as the single parent of seven children. To add to the family's plight, Jennie died just nine months later, perhaps due to complications of childbirth with son James Francis (b. April 22nd, 1902). She would be buried in an adjoining lot (K67) and her name carved on the same monument  with her husband and son.

​I became very curious of what became of the orphaned children including Johnson who eye-witnessed the deaths of his father and younger brother at the quarry back in August, 1901. James and Jennie Burch's surviving children were:

1.) Katherine Virginia Burch (Aug. 1885-1934, married Charles Martin Paris in 1913 in Washington, DC).
 
2.) Mildred Alice Burch (Nov. 1886 - 1942) is buried here in Mount Olivet near her parents grave in Area X/Lot 1.

​3.) Robert E. L. Burch (Jan. 1889 - Dec. 4th, 1911) - funeral notice attached; it says that he attended Buckingham School and that he died as a result of injuries from his railroad job. Buried at Mount Olivet in the same grave lot as James and William Clarence (Area K/Lot 64), however his name was not placed on the monument.

​4.) Thomas Johnson Burch (Aug. 16th, 1892/1893 - May 7th, 1930) who is buried at Mount Olivet under the name Johnson Burch. I couldn't find him in the 1910 census or later, but did locate his WW1 draft registration. The Charles Black for whom he was working in 1917 is probably the Charles N. Black (1886-1983) buried at Mount Olivet in Area L. Johnson died of pneumonia and is recorded as being buried in Area K/Lot 51, a few yards away from other family members in an unmarked grave.

5. )William Clarence Burch was the original victim of the Grove Quarry accident of 1901.
 
6.) Frances C. Burch (Mar 1899-1960) - in 1910 she was in the Loats Asylum. In 1918, she married George Washington Grantham in Washington, DC. Apparently after he died in 1940, she married Charles Woods Adams.
 
7.) James Francis Burch (April 22nd, 1902 - Aug. 28th, 1971) was born after his father's death. As mentioned above, his mother died May 16th 1902, perhaps due to complications of his birth. In the 1910 census, he is shown as an orphan in the household of Richard Carlisle in Barnesville. In the 1920 census, he is listed as the adopted son of Richard Carlisle. By 1930, he was married, but his wife (Francis E. Johnson) died shortly thereafter, and in 1940 James was lodging with Lucy Carlisle (daughter of Richard Carlisle) in Boyds. His youngest son, Robert Lee Burch, was an Army corporal in WWII and is buried at Riverside National Cemetery in California.

Isn't it fascinating (and extremely troubling) how a sudden, unexpected accident at a quarry can change a family's fortunes forever? This particular situation with the Burch family would not be considered careless, but just terribly unfortunate. Regardless, please seek the tranquil waters of a pool or ocean if you can, lifeguards are given that name for a reason.

Special bonus below, click to see Frederick quarry footage east of MD Route 355.

​I came across a very odd sight in the cemetery while conducting a tour a few weeks ago for a throng of middle-schoolers attending a history camp. No need to brace yourself, as it has nothing to do with anything disturbing or macabre. Rather, it was simply a discoloration of a section of a ledger-style gravestone. Or should I say, it can be better described as a rare preservation of a portion of a ledger gravestone.

The history session immediately turned into a science lab in which I was describing why this lasting memorial to Eleanor S. (Pratt) Turner (1842-1844) and her consort, Thomas Turner (1799-1849), had a big, white rectangle on its face. I had to stop my presentation and think a minute, but the answer was crystal clear—It was all about aging and exposure to outside elements.

Although old age does a number on all gravestones (as it does most decedents), the Maryland climate with four seasons also plays a major factor on our memorials. Blame this on such things as algae, lichen, moss, mold, or mildew growth and stains. These growths develop on the surface, making headstones look dark, dirty, and downright creepy. Most grave monuments sit outside naturally, and are constantly subjected to moist, humid conditions.
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Unfortunately, these situations promote unsightly growths to take hold and grow. This is especially true in the southern part of the country where high humidity is common.

​The D/2 Biological solution kills the lichen and whitens the stone, especially effective in the case of marble grave markers. This was the dominant material utilized in the early decades of the cemetery. D/2 is sprayed on the damp gravestone and one can see immediately things start to happen. You may question yourself as to why the gravestone is turning pink?  Don't worry—as its normal for the stone to turn a subtle color of pinkish-orange, gray or purplish brown in other cases after applying the solution.

​This color change is the result of the biological organisms reacting to the solution.  Not all stones react this way, but some will—and this discoloration is only temporary. When it does, it will generally take 24-48 hours before the discoloration disappears.  So, the only downside is that you may have to come back after a few days to take some good "after cleaning" pictures.

I give plenty of lectures and programs to civic and social groups around the county and talk about our continued preservation and fundraising efforts and am often asked, "Why do you want to clean the monuments as the wear and soiling gives them a unique character."  I ask the question back of them saying "Why do we clean our cars, marble countertops, or power-wash decks and patios?" I tell them not to worry, just give it time and they will eventually be dirty again one day. More so, I explain the importance of cleaning as a necessary maintenance to preserve the longevity of the stone, especially in each monument's legibility. Let's just say, "A clean stone is a happy stone."

If you are curious about the process and want to see it happening live, I invite you to come out some Thursday morning and see for yourself. Perhaps we may even recruit you to our ranks with a membership in our FOMO Group? (Contact me for more info if interested). Nan Markey, our "Chief Stoner," (pictured below) would love to have you as she has been leading our organized process section by section for the past two years. We are lucky to have this level of detail from the retired Registrar of Hood College, and plenty of other talented folks who care about Mount Olivet.

​So, what’s the deal with Eleanor and Thomas Turner’s headstone in Area H/Lot 399? Why would somebody only clean a small section of a large ledger stone? Au contraire, this is not the case at all! First off, let me explain the term “ledger stone” to those who may not be familiar with it. A ledger stone, or ledgerstone, is an inscribed stone slab usually laid into the floor of a church to commemorate or mark the place of the burial of an important deceased person. The term "ledger" derives from the Middle English words lygger, ligger or leger, themselves derived from the root of the Old English verb liċġan, meaning to lie (down). Think of accounting ledgers, and ledger paper and notepads—long and narrow.

​Ledger stones may also be found as slabs forming the tops of chest tombs. An inscription is usually incised into the stone within a ledger line running around the edge of the stone in the same manner a ledger book contains stacked rows of recorded information and numbers. Such inscription may continue within the central area of the stone, which may be decorated with relief-sculpted or incised coats of arms, or other appropriate decorative items such as skulls, hourglasses, etc. Stones with inset brasses first appeared in the 13th century.

​Gravestones of this type are generally found in older, “colonial-era” cemeteries in New England and English-settled places like Williamsburg, Virginia or New Castle, Delaware. They also were a preferred grave marker of the wealthy. We have many examples here at Mount Olivet, some predating our cemetery and coming from other downtown graveyards. There are also instances of more recent decedents simply fancying this unique, throwback-style of monument.

​In the case of the Turners, here is a ledger stone that is propped up off the ground with four rounded-pillars. These appear to be standing on a flat rock, purposely put in place to be used as a foundation, as not to allow the pillars to sink into the earth below. This creates an optic looking like legs supporting a table or an altar. Regardless, you want to put something between the stone and the ground, so as to keep it from eventually sinking and  being engulfed into the ground over time. 

​The grave (stone and decedent) in question was moved here in 1859 from the former All Saints’ Protestant Episcopal Church Graveyard along Carroll Creek. Eleanor Turner died on March 28th, 1844. This took a little research as the All Saints’ Parish Burial Records (Register #3) states: “Ellen or Eleanor S. Turner, wife of Thomas (of D.C.), died March 28th, 1844, while her headstone recorded her death as March 27th, 1844.”

As for Eleanor’s husband (or consort), I was fascinated to learn that Thomas Turner was the editor and publisher of the Frederick Town Herald, immediately before Lewis F. Coppersmith, the subject of our last “Story in Stone.” Coppersmith continued his predecessor’s role throughout the 1850s. What are the odds of that? As I’ve said many times, I love discovering these unique “connections” within these stories as it’s not just connections across family lines, but almost anything imaginable in some cases. Thomas Turner had begun a newspaper in Georgetown in 1837 called the Potomac Advocate and Metropolitan Intelligencer. Like Coppersmith, Mr. Turner also practiced law and served as a clerk as well for the Chesapeake and Ohio Canal. He died on January 31st, 1849 and his obituary appeared in multiple papers in Maryland and around the nation’s capital.

​One way or another, the Turner’s fashionable stone was apparently used as a makeshift table to hold another family member’s stone, or a portion thereof. This was Mr. Turner’s sister, Catharine Contee (Turner) Thomas. She died at age 30 on September 22nd, 1831. Jacob Engelbrecht made mention of this death as well in his famous diary. Like her brother and sister-in-law, Catharine is what we call “a removal,” and was brought here from All Saints Protestant Episcopal Graveyard as well.

​We learn that Catharine’s father (Thomas Turner, Sr.) was an "Accountant of the Navy Department" from the inscription on her headstone. The stone also records the fact that she was married to Dr. John M. Thomas. John M. is not buried here with her, as he died on December 28th, 1835, in St. Louis, Missouri, about the age of 38.  Dr. Thomas was in the U.S. Army, but I cannot locate a burial for him here locally, in Maryland, Missouri, or the District of Columbia.

​Catharine’s mini-ledger stone must have sat on the Turner’s stone for quite some time as it protected/blocked the area directly underneath from the elements and pollutants. For reasons unknown, somebody recently moved Catherine’s stone toward the bottom of her brother’s ledger. Perhaps it was a descendant or interested genealogist who wanted to see what was written on the area of Eleanor and Thomas’ stone that was covered for all those years?

Apparently, the Turners never bought a home in Frederick, unfortunately. Deeds found by my assistant, Marilyn Veek, for Thomas Turner involved bringing enslaved persons from Washington, D.C. into Maryland when he moved here. These included one in 1840 for a Negro girl named Emily (age 18) and a girl Phoebe (age 10). Other deeds were written in 1842 (a Negro girl Rachel age 11-12) and in 1844 (a Mulatto woman Letty Henson aged 30-35 and her infant child Maria Victoria aged about 15 months).
I did, however, find the Turner’s former home when they lived in northwest Washington, D.C. It still stands and is in Georgetown, on the southeast corner of current day 31st Street, N.W. (formerly known as Congress Street) and Dumbarton Avenue.

​The Turners had a long history in Georgetown prior to moving to Frederick. Thomas Turner, Sr. (father of our “multi-colored stone” subjects) was clerk of the corporation of Georgetown prior to 1791 and was elected mayor on January 5th, 1795. Also in 1795, Thomas, Sr. was appointed by the governor of Maryland to a committee to assess the impact of constructing a road from Georgetown to a bridge to be built over the Potomac at Little Falls. The bridge would become a reality and featured several stone abutments and wooden cross sections that went across the Potomac. Little Falls is the place on the river where Washington, D.C., Maryland, and Virginia meet. You may recognize this structure as “Chain Bridge,” which originally was a covered wooden bridge completed on July 3rd, 1797. It apparently rotted and collapsed by 1804, and a replacement of the same design burned around 1805. Numerous bridges have been built in the same position since then.

​Speaking of bridges, Thomas Sr.’s son, Thomas Turner (Eleanor's husband), was on a committee that petitioned the U.S. Senate to build a bridge in connection with the aqueduct for the Alexandria Canal Company. This was the first Aqueduct Bridge, built in 1830 to carry the Chesapeake and Ohio Canal across the Potomac to connect with the Alexandria Canal on the Virginia shore. The bridge was later converted into a roadway during the American Civil War. In 1866, the canal was restored, and a new wooden roadway built over it atop trestles. The 1830 bridge was torn down in 1884, and a new structure was built, opening in 1889. This would be named for an individual who once lived on the Georgetown side of the bridge that takes motorists across the river to Rosslyn (VA)—the Francis Scott Key Bridge and is more commonly referred to the Key Bridge.

​The Washington and Virginia abutments for the original crossing still survive. Both are located a short distance west of the Key Bridge. Between the two abutments, a pier also remains in the river near the Virginia shore. How’s that for “bridging” history?

​In January of 1800, Thomas Turner, Sr. (the father of Thomas Turner and Catharine Thomas) was nominated by John Adams to be Fourth Auditor (accountant of the U.S. Navy) in the Treasury Department and served for 16 years. As mentioned earlier, this position is noted on daughter Catherine Contee (Turner) Thomas’ ledger headstone. Fitting that a ledger stone connects to a ledger entry about an accountant, isn’t it?

Mr. Turner had his hands full with the new branch of our young country's armed forces. He would serve in this position throughout the duration of the War of 1812, and was likely very familiar with fellow Georgetown resident and notable war personality Francis Scott Key and his catchy tune about the flag over Baltimore's Fort McHenry.

Examples of Thomas Turner Sr.'s accounting prowess with these published reports on US Navy expenditures at the time of the War of 1812.

​Eleanor Pratt and Thomas Turner were married in 1825 in Allegany County, which seems odd at first glance, but both had ties to Cumberland as a home thanks to the construction of the C & O Canal. Not a great deal is known about Eleanor, but there is a definitive connection to Frederick through her mother, Christiana B. (Tyler) Pratt (1767-1825), a sister of Dr. John Tyler (1763-1841). We will review the accomplished life of Dr. Tyler another time as he is buried here in Mount Olivet, but many are familiar with the fact that he was one of our country’s first accomplished ophthalmologists and receives credit as one of the first physicians to perform cataract surgery. His majestic home of West Church Street still survives and is known as the Tyler-Spite House.

​Catharine (Turner) Thomas is named for Dr. Tyler’s wife, the former Catharine Contee Harrison (1770-1831). Both Dr. and Mrs. Tyler are buried in Area MM/Lot 52. There is yet another family link as our subject Thomas Turner’s mother was a sister to Mrs. Tyler in the form of Eleanor Contee Harrison who married Thomas Turner, Sr. 1n 1792.

​When Dr. Tyler died intestate in 1841, there was an equity court case. Thomas Turner was one of the trustees appointed in the case to handle the sale of Tyler's property but, refrained from buying any of it himself.

Eleanor’s father was Thomas George Pratt, born in the year 1769. He removed from his native Prince Georges County to Allegany County (Maryland) and eventually afterwards lived in southwestern Frederick County at a point about five miles from Harper's Ferry. This was a 245-acre plantation bought in 1830 from the estate of Daniel Leakins which included part of Fielderia Manor on the eastern slope of Catoctin Mountain east of Jefferson (near the intersection of MD 180 and Mount Zion Road). Unfortunately, Pratt got himself into debt and had to sell this property off in 1832. After that, he apparently lived with his son-in-law, a man named George Washington West (1803-1888) who married his daughter Eliza.
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The same year of 1832, a year after the death of Catherine (Turner) Thomas, saw more heartache for Mr. Pratt, the Turners and recent widower Dr. John M. Thomas—all connected to our Mount Olivet “Stonehenge of stacked ledgers” in form of a table in Area H. Thomas Turner’s first-born son, named Thomas Turner, would die of Scarlet Fever at the home of Dr. West on October 8th. One week later, Thomas Turner Thomas, only child of Dr. Thomas, would pass of likely the same ailment at the same location. Both obituaries appeared in the October 8th edition of the Frederick Town Herald.

​In 1834, Pratt sold West two enslaved persons; the deed includes the following language:

"I Thomas Pratt fully aware of the trouble inconvenience and expense to which Doct. George W. West and his family have been subjected by the board of and attention to myself during the four last years & that the same will continue so long as I may live, and being willing and desirous some compensation to the said Doct. George W. West for the services so rendered and to be rendered by himself and family.”
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And here is another amazing connection, but perhaps more so for me, because of a personal link. I recently became interested in the George W. West family through my son’s girlfriend who lives on a parcel that was once part of the larger West plantation known as Westhill Farm. This is located just “west” of Petersville, a small hamlet located on the fore-mentioned MD180, the original road from Frederick to Harpers Ferry which at one time was a turnpike. Westhill Farm is quite picturesque and can be seen from MD 340 as well, with its stone manor house, barn buildings and an adjacent pond.

​Thought to be built around 1800 by Thomas H. West, the house passed to his son, Dr. George Washington West (1803-1888), in an 1832 partition of real property following his death. Dr. West was a prominent local physician and former graduate of the University of Maryland in 1825. George W. West would own the farm for more than 50 years and his name is shown on both the 1858 Bond Atlas and 1873 Titus Atlas of Frederick County.

​Since I rarely get to speak on Petersville, the village grew as a stop along the turnpike with businesses to serve travelers as well as local farmers. The land on which Petersville is situated was originally patented by Captain John Colvill as the "Merryland Tract" on November 5th, 1731, containing over 6,000 acres. Shortly after the Revolutionary War, Petersville began to develop as a village, with lots facing the turnpike route and four cross streets. The village also sat at the crossroads of one of the valley's north-south roads leading from Middletown to Berlin (today Brunswick). The 1808 Varle Map of Maryland shows Petersville as well. Five years later, in October 1813, the Petersville Post Office was established (it closed in 1909). The Maryland General Assembly established the Petersville District in 1829.

In his will, Thomas Pratt had intended to leave his own plantation at Fielderia (part of the former site of a short-lived, colonial era furnace operation by Fielder Gantt) to his son John Wilkes Pratt, who was named executor. Unfortunately, by the time Thomas died in 1834, he had lost the property. John Wilkes Pratt declined to return to Maryland to be executor as he had gone to Cass County, Illinois for health reasons. While there, the brother of the fore-mentioned Eleanor (Turner) and Catherine (Thomas) worked as a lawyer, served in the State Legislature, and performed duties as Cass County’s first County Clerk.

Not living to see it, Thomas Pratt would've been proud of the fact that his son excelled where he, himself, fell short. Mr. Pratt’s grandson (John Wilkes Pratt’s son) Thomas George Pratt was even more accomplished. The young man studied law and returned to his father’s native state to settle in Prince Georges County. He would serve in the House of Delegates and State Senate for several years before becoming Maryland’s governor from 1845-48. Two years later in 1850, Thomas and Eleanor Turner’s nephew, Thomas G. Pratt, was elected to the U.S. Senate to represent the Western Shore of Maryland.

​As for the governor’s namesake, I found Eleanor (Pratt) Turner’s father buried next to his daughter Eliza and husband George W. West in St. Mark’s Apostolic Church Cemetery on the “east” side of Petersville.

​After Eleanor and Thomas passed in the mid to late 1840s, their children were split up. Son Thomas became a physician at age 17 and went to live with Samuel Turner, his uncle (also a physician) in Clarke County, VA. Thomas was still living in Clarke County in 1860, but I could not locate him in 1870, as he was possibly lying low after the American Civil War since he served with the Confederacy as a surgeon. In 1880, Dr. Turner and his family were living on South Market Street in Frederick.

​In 1900 the family was living at what is now 125 W. Second St, in a house owned by George Nixdorf. The younger Thomas Turner never bought any real estate of his own, but in the late 1890s held a mortgage from Bettie Ritchie on the house then known as 50-52 W. Church St. She defaulted on the mortgage, and he sold the property at 50 West Church Street to Otho Keller and 52 West Church Street to Henrietta Maulsby. Today these properties are labeled as 116-118 W. Church Street. We did a story on Mrs. Ritchie a few years back as she was the foundress of our original Frederick Chapter of the Daughters of the American Revolution. 

Eleanor and Thomas Turner’s daughters remained in Frederick. In the 1850 census, the head of household was Mary Jane Turner, age 36. The others were Rebecca, age 33, Ellenor “Ellen”, age 20, Jane R. age 17, Eliza, age 15. An obituary for oldest daughter Ellenor (aka Ellen/Eleanor Contee (Turner) Magruder) from the Washington Star says she was very prominent later in life after showing selflessness in caring for her younger siblings after the parents died.

​Mary Jane Turner (1814-1867) and Rebecca Turner (1817-1877) are aunts of Eleanor, Jane “Jennie” Rebecca and Eliza—making them sisters of our subject Thomas Turner. These ladies bought what is now 211-213 East Second St in 1855. The property was sold in 1879 after Rebecca's death (the current building is more recent, however). I couldn’t determine where they were living in 1850 but, did discover that Rebecca had employment with the U.S. Navy.

​Here in Mount Olivet’s Area H/Lot 399, Mary Jane, Rebecca and Dr. Thomas Turner are buried next to Thomas and Eleanor Turner’s table-resembling memorial. The physician died on September 6th, 1908 from "a pulmonary affection."

​Within adjoining lot #403, one can find grave markers for Thomas and Eleanor’s daughters: Ellen C. (Turner) Magruder (1828-1896), Eliza Turner (1835-1916) and Jane "Jennie" (Turner) Anderson (1831-1888). 

​Frankly, all these stones could use a good cleaning, and hopefully they will match the small, pearly white rectangle that can be found on Thomas and Eleanor’s discolored grave ledger!

​A lonely stone exists amidst the graves of prominent personages located in Mount Olivet’s Area G on the ascending slope of Cemetery Hill. This locale was also once known as Pumphouse Hill because of the said dug well and “pump” placed atop our chief geologic feature which fed water in all directions through an elaborate trough system.

The gravestone in question is within the Baugher family plot, only 15 yards from the fenced-in area known as the Potts Lot, one of the iconic landmarks of Mount Olivet. Maria Louisa Coppersmith’s marble grave has a commanding view of the burial grounds’ northernmost section, looking toward the heart of downtown Frederick City. Others buried in the Baugher Lot are Maria Louisa’s parents, Isaac (1787-1848) and Ann Elizabeth (Greenmyer) Baugher (1796-1876), brother Charles H. (1830-1912) and wife Meliora Ogle (Dahl) Baughman (1836-1926) and sister Emma C. Baughman (1843-1911).

Our cemetery records reveal that Charles was a veteran of the American Civil War where he served in the Union’s Potomac Home Brigade outfit as captain of Company D. He would die in his later home of Takoma Park in Montgomery County. Sister Emma was a nun, cloistered in Washington, D.C., the place of her death.

​This family hailed from Abbottstown, Pennsylvania, and Maria Louisa Coppersmith’s great grandparents, Johann George Bager (1725-1791) and Anna Elizabeth Schwab are said to have given rise to all Baughers in the United States. The couple came from Giessen, Darmstadt, Germany in 1748 and sailed to America on a ship called the "Rawley" in 1752. The "u" and "h" were added to the Bager name upon arrival in North America, most likely thanks to immigration officials at the Port of Philadelphia, but that is likely an "old German wives' tale."

​Although not familiar with Maria Louisa and the Baugher family (outside of the successful orchard and produce operation of Westminster in neighboring Carroll County), I knew the name “Coppersmith” which has always made me think of Charles Dickens (1812-1870) and his famed novel David Copperfield. Of course, you may also say that I am reminded of the magician/illusionist by the same name of more recent times.
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Dickens, the gentleman who gave us Ebenezer Scrooge in his legendary A Christmas Carol, penned this novel in the Bildungsroman genre and it is narrated by the eponymous David Copperfield, detailing adventures in his journey from infancy to maturity. What is Bildungsroman, you may ask? It is a literary style that focuses on the psychological and moral growth of the protagonist from childhood to adulthood in which character change is important.

​This autobiographical novel is said to be “a very complicated weaving of truth and invention,” with events following Dickens’ own life. It was first published as a serial in 1849 and 1850 and as a book in 1850.
Now that we’ve introduced Maria Louisa’s evocative name, at least for me, how did she come about it? Maria Louisa’s husband was a man named Lewis Frederick Coppersmith. In attempting research here for this “Story in Stone,” I found him to have led a somewhat mysterious life, filled with plenty of “ups and downs.” Not nearly as fascinating as David Copperfield from an artistic bent, however Lewis' life typifies Bildungsroman from what I can gather. In a way, the same can be said of Maria Louisa Coppersmith as well. All this aside, I pondered the question of why this couple is not buried side by side, or in Mr. Coppersmith's case, not in Mount Olivet at all for that matter?

​The Coppersmiths
Maria Louisa Baugher married Lewis F. Coppersmith on November 2nd, 1839 in Frederick. Her husband, the second of three known children, was born in 1813, a year before Dicken’s David Copperfield (1814). From as far as I can tell, Coppersmith was born in Georgetown and lived his early life in the District of Columbia. His father, Henry (1782-1815) was a native Marylander and I conjecture the son of George Coppersmith, and grandson of a John Coppersmith who once owned a property in the late 1700s in the area that would become Mechanicstown (later Thurmont). I found their land holding was called “Timber Plenty” (surveyed in 1764) and this bordered land belonging to Peter Appel, who provided land for the church and graveyard that still bear his name.

Lewis Frederick Coppersmith’s mother, Magdalena Eichelberger, also had definitive ties to northern Frederick County and, in particular, the Creagerstown area. Genealogists refer to her father as “Owens Creek” Frederick Eichelberger (1763-1838). Magdalena’s mother was related to the Motter family (for whom Motter Avenue was named) and originally from Emmitsburg.

​From an old newspaper advertisement appearing in 1839, it appears that Lewis Frederick was involved in selling his Georgetown home, where he lived with his mother and sister, in exchange for western lands. He would marry Maria Louisa later the same year. This appears to have become a reality because Coppersmith can be found practicing law in Indiana by February, 1840. Apparently, Lewis had already been living out there, or commuting back and forth to the nation’s capital.

The newlyweds would take up home in Columbus, Indiana, located about 40 miles southeast of Indianapolis. This would later be the birthplace of two notable individuals: former Indiana governor and U.S. vice president Mike Pence and basketball sneaker designer Chuck Taylor. My impeccable research assistant, Marilyn Veek, also found the following tidbits on Mr. C:

“L.F. Coppersmith” is mentioned as publisher of the Columbus (IN) Advocate newspaper in 1837-1840. The January 8th, 1839 minutes of the Indiana Senate mention a petition from him and others “praying a change in the mode of doing county business in the county of Bartholomew.” In 1839, he was one of the superintendents for building the new courthouse in Columbus, and also a member of the bar there. He and others petitioned the Indiana legislature “praying sundry alterations in the act to incorporate the Columbus and Driftwood Bridge Company” – mentioned in relation to an act to incorporate the Columbus and Driftwood Bridge Company approved in 1839.
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Here is an excerpt mentioning Mr. C. from The History of Bartholomew County, Indiana published in 1888:

​Meanwhile, I found a document from the western land claims of the General Land Office in which Lewis held deed to 160 acres in Jeffersonville, (Bartholomew County) Indiana. The document was approved under the watchful eye of U.S. President James K. Polk. Another interesting purchase, closer to home, would follow.

​The Baltimore Sun newspaper identified Lewis Coppersmith as having purchased the Frederick Town Herald newspaper in 1849. We could not find an official deed however. Regardless, the Coppersmiths came back east to Frederick at this time. They can be found in the 1850 US Census living with Maria Louisa’s mother Ann Baugher. Was this move precipitated by the Herald opportunity, family ties, or both? Most likely it was caused by the death of Maria Louisa's father, Isaac Baugher, who died in 1848. I found an advertisement in a Washington, D.C. newspaper which showed that he had considerable holdings in the nation's capital, and this makes me wonder if the Coppersmiths met in Frederick or D.C. originally?

​Maria Louisa’s mother lived here in the building known as the Hahn house, on the northwest corner of East Church and Maxwell Alley (then known as Middle Alley). This is across from Heritage Frederick and next to the parsonage of Evangelical Lutheran Church.

​At this time (1850), Lewis’ mom (Magdalena) and sister can be found living with Eichelberger relatives in Creagerstown.

​Back in Frederick, Lewis F. Coppersmith would purchase a property just one block to the west of his home. This would be located on the northwest corner of Market and Church streets. He made this acquisition in the same year of 1850.

Now, I have come across Coppersmith’s name several times in past research associated with downtown Frederick, originally seeing it in connection with a location named the Coppersmith Building, and more distinctly, “Coppersmith Hall.” This became a place where political meetings, and convalescing soldiers, were held during the American Civil War. More on all this in a minute.

​In my current job, I’ve read that Mr. Coppersmith was one of the charter members of the cemetery. He served on Mount Olivet’s founding Board of Directors from October 4th, 1852-May 7th, 1860. His cousin, Grayson Eichelberger (1822-1870), was also a charter member and served through to his death in 1870. Grayson doubled as Lewis F. Coppersmith’s brother-in-law as well, marrying Maria Louisa’s sister Amanda Baugher. The Eichelbergers are buried in the adjoining lot to Maria Louisa Coppersmith’s grave.

​By 1852, Lewis also found himself on the board of visitors for the Frederick Female Seminary and chairman of a committee responsible for raising funds for a stone foundation needed to build the new All Saints Church on West Church Street. I’m assuming he was a member of this congregation as well. Mrs. Coppersmith, however, belonged to the Lutheran church to my knowledge.

Back to Coppersmith’s structure located at what today is 101 North Market Street, and also referred to as the “Herald Buildings” in early accounts. Researcher and author Terry Reimer did a wonderful job documenting the Civil War era history of this building in her 2001 book, One Vast Hospital: The Civil War Hospital Sites in Frederick, Maryland after Antietam. She explains that Coppersmith Hall was a three-story brick building erected in 1851 by its namesake. He published the Frederick Town Herald in the section of the building that faced Church Street. The piece that faced Market was utilized as a billiard saloon and auction house.

​I must add that Mr. C purchased another parcel at the southeast corner of Carroll and All Saints streets. In 1856, he apparently operated a barrel manufacturing facility here. Coppersmith had mortgaged the Market Street property to Farmers & Mechanics Bank a few months before he bought this Carroll Street property. Between 1855 and 1858 he borrowed money, both as promissory notes and mortgages, from local farmer/businessman John Loats, Central Bank, Union Bank of Baltimore and Fredericktown Savings. Despite this, in 1857, he apparently owed money (mortgage) to William L.W. Seabrook for the Fredericktown Herald (We didn't find an earlier deed for Coppersmith owning the Herald). Two of the mortgages to John Loats included not only real estate, but the barrel manufacturing equipment.

By 1858, Coppersmith found himself indebted to John Loats for over $14,000. He sought relief under the "Act for Insolvent Debtors" and as a result lost both of his commercial properties. Market Street (Coppersmith Hall) was sold to John Loats and (brother-in-law) Grayson Eichelberger for $6,900, and the Carroll Street facility to John Sifford. ​The newspaper's printing press and equipment to John Wilson Heard, a southern sympathizer.